Austin Naramore

Even though Austin Naramore, a junior at Perry-Lecompton High School, won’t take a government class until next year, he thinks he’ll probably know a thing or two about the way it’s run after spending his summer working as a congressional page.

“I thought it would be a very good life experience for me and it would help me for college,” Naramore says.

Congressional pages were first hired in 1827 to serve as messengers in the U.S. House of Representatives. Today, high school juniors are chosen from around the country to participate in the program based on academic achievement, extracurricular activities, a written essay and letters of recommendation from teachers. But first, they must be nominated by their state representative.

Naramore says he is very grateful to Congresswoman Lynn Jenkins, who nominated him for the position.

“I am very excited and grateful for the opportunity to represent my family, my school, my community and my state in Washington, D.C., this summer,” he says.

Some of Naramore’s duties will include delivering mail, answering phones and preparing the House floor for sessions.

And although Naramore isn’t sure yet where he wants to go to college, he says he hopes to incorporate politics into that experience. For now, he said he was nervous and excited to get to experience life away from home for the first time.

“And it’s my first time flying,” he says.