Marlowe Miyuki Gamble, an eighth grader at McMurray Middle School, served as a page with the Washington State Senate the week of April 17. Sen. Joe Nguyen (D-White Center) sponsored their week at the Legislature.
The page program offers a week of interactive learning about how state government works. Pages get to witness committee hearings, sit in on floor debates, and deliver materials for Senate staff.
Gamble applied to the program “because it seemed like a unique opportunity and to be honest, it would look good on my college application.”
Gamble’s favorite part is helping on the Senate floor: “Even though you are just passing out documents and watching, you feel like you learn a lot more compared to being in a classroom.”
They sponsored a bill for the page program’s mock committee regarding livestock replacement killed by wolves.
“My group’s bill that we introduced was the killing of livestock by wolves. I really liked the process of the mock committee because it gives you an opportunity to feel what it is like to actually debate and learn about the process to make a bill become a law.”
Gamble also would recommend the program to potential candidates in the future: “I myself am not amazing at social studies and other things like that, but I felt like I learned a lot without having to sit in class and have my mind wander.”
Gamble said the biggest thing they are taking away from this all is how informative this experience has been. “I have learned that no matter your skill level, you can still learn so much from just one week here at the Legislature.”
For more information about the Senate Page Program, contact SenatePageProgram@leg.wa.gov.
