Girls State is a yearly program that brings together one girl from each high school in their respective states for six days to build a government and create a single state representing their voices, interests, and concerns. There were 421 girls sponsored from all over California, and it cost nearly $265,000 to assemble the 2024 session.
Upon arrival, delegates are divided into cities. Three or four cities form a county, and four counties form the state. At every level, delegates are allowed to run for an elected position or be appointed one. I ran for a position at every level — and lost every single time. In hindsight, this experience taught me one of the most important lessons of my life, one that will be etched in my memory forever.
I was mortified to consistently see myself lose after giving speeches in front of 400 girls. I wasn’t prepared to do so either. I had never run for an elected office before, and my lack of experience proved detrimental to my success. I couldn’t rouse my crowd into cheers or scrape up the courage to yell into a microphone, no matter how passionate I was for the office I was running for.
It was my first time stepping out of my ‘Rocklin bubble,’ and it was an incredibly grounding and humbling experience to see where I stood among so many talented and like-minded individuals. I was not the only one who felt this way.
Katrina R. said, “There is a disappointment when your name doesn’t get called for the position, but at the end of the day, you have to understand that you are surrounded by so many like-minded women who have the same goals.”
The incredible camaraderie that instantly bonds the delegates creates the perfect environment for stepping out of their comfort zones. Girls State took healthy competition to a whole new level. When one girl in my city won, she pulled us up with her; when one lost, we all felt it as deeply as she did. Calling the program life-changing is an understatement. Girls State has taught me that true success isn’t just about winning; it’s about the courage to compete and the grace to accept defeat. The guide to success in anything is just to keep failing — to keep falling but decide to stand back up and do it all over again.
