Students who are interested in current events, politics, film, debates, and discussions enjoy meeting every Thursday except the last one every month in room 317.  With their advisor, history teacher Ms. Serena Mason, they are part of the Junior States of America (JSA).  Recent debates have been about the Oscars, the death penalty, President Barack Obama, and school uniforms. 
     “I joined JSA because I'm really interested in politics and current issues and enjoy conversations about them,” said Sophomore Emma Anderson.  She said that she likes the topics they discuss, debating them, and watching films about them.
      Senior Emmy Lutes is the president of JSA.  “I decided to join JSA last year because Ms. Mason was my teacher,” she said.  She likes the interesting facts she learns from being involved in the club and debating.  JSA even helped Lutes with college interviews because she was able to bring up some of the facts she learned through her involvement in the club. 
      At a recent JSA meeting, Mason pointed out that the club will help the students who are involved when they attend college because it provides debating experience.  She said that professors use debating frequently in college classes. 
      At the meeting debating whether public schools should have uniforms, the girls were against the idea and the boys were for it.  The girls said that uniforms violate the right to express oneself, people might rebel against the idea, and that uniforms are expensive.  Boys said that people are self-conscious about clothes, and that uniforms will make people function as equalizers. 
     Mason does an analysis at the end of the debate and announces the winner.  For this particular debate, the girls won.