High School Students from West Hartford, Norwich, Selected for Prestigious US Senate Program

The United States Senate Youth Program (USSYP) has announced that high school students Natalie DeLaCruz of West Hartford and Karen Lau of Norwich will join Sen. Richard Blumenthal and Sen. Chris Murphy in representing Connecticut during the prestigious 59th annual USSYP Washington Week, to be held March 14 — 17, 2021.

DeLaCruz and Lau were selected from among the state’s top student leaders to be part of the 104 student delegation from across the nation.  Due to the pandemic, the 2021 program will break ground as the first-ever fully virtual Washington Week, and is designed to be a highly interactive and exciting education and leadership forum for the nation’s most outstanding student leaders.

The USSYP was created in "to increase young Americans’ understanding of the interrelationships of the three branches of government, learn the caliber and responsibilities of federally elected and appointed officials, and emphasize the vital importance of democratic decision making not only for America but for people around the world."

Each year this extremely competitive merit-based program brings the most outstanding high school students - two from each state, the District of Columbia and the Department of Defense Education Activity - to Washington, D.C. for an intensive week-long study of the federal government and the people who lead it. However, this year, the program will be held online.

The overall mission of the program is to help instill within each class of USSYP student delegates more profound knowledge of the American political process and a lifelong commitment to public service. In addition to the program week, The Hearst Foundations provide each student with a $10,000 undergraduate college scholarship with encouragement to continue coursework in government, history and public affairs. In addition to outstanding leadership abilities and a strong commitment to volunteer work, the student delegates rank academically in the top one percent of their states among high school juniors and seniors.

Natalie DeLaCruz, a senior at Conard High School in West Hartford, serves as Conard's Herren Project club president as well as national youth ambassador for the Herren Project. The Herren Project tackles issues of substance abuse and mental health. She is also the Student Council president, and her town's student representative on the West Hartford Greater Together Community Fund Advisory Committee, a committee tasked with writing grants for local nonprofits. DeLaCruz also chairs U. S. Congressman John B. Larson's Congressional Youth Cabinet.

Karen Lau, a senior at Norwich Free Academy, currently serves as president of the NAACP Youth Council and served as secretary of the Student Advisory Board. She helped organize the Black History Month Town Halls, Peruvian Awareness Panel, phone banking drives, and mental health awareness panels. Karen helped launch the Stop It app, a tool for students to anonymously report bullying to Campus Safety.

As a coordinator for Project Outreach, a volunteer organization, she leads the new student program. On the Norwich Race Equity Committee, she is working to draft an equity policy for Norwich Public Schools. In addition, Lau has interned at Norwich Community Development Corporation, Norwich Human Services and Slater Memorial Museum. Currently, she interns in the Office of U.S. Congressman Joe Courtney, where she assists staff with immigrant visa applications, veterans’ casework, and grants.

“The two students selected are absolutely fantastic: both are deeply committed to political life and political change,” said Stephen Armstrong of the Connecticut Department of Education. “I would also like to commend all of the students who applied for this honor: all of them are real change agents in their schools and communities.  It is a shame that 15 more students could not be recognized. The Hearst Foundation United States Senate Youth Program is an amazing program.  Every Connecticut student that has participated has told me afterwards that it is a truly live-changing event.”

Chosen as alternates to the 2021 program were Keshav Ramesh, a resident of South Windsor who attends South Windsor High School and Colin Speaker, a resident of Greenwich, who attends Greenwich High School.

Delegates and alternates are selected by the state departments of education nationwide and the District of Columbia and Department of Defense Education Activity, after nomination by teachers and principals. The chief state school officer for each jurisdiction confirms the final selection. This year’s Connecticut delegates and alternates were designated by Dr. Miguel Cardona, Connecticut’s Commissioner of Education, who has since been nominated by President Biden to serve as U.S. Secretary of Education.

It is the third consecutive year that a student from West Hartford will be representing Connecticut.  The state’s 2020 representatives were Nina Faynshtayn of Hall High School in West Hartford and Mariam Khan of Hamden High School.  In 2019, the students selected were Megan Striff-Cave of Hall High School and Bayan Galal of Woodland Regional High School in Prospect.  The 2018 student participants from Connecticut were Ananya Kachru of Amity Regional High School in Woodbridge and Annie Eang of Cheshire High School. 

During the program week, the student delegates will attend online meetings and briefings with senators, the president, a justice of the Supreme Court, leaders of cabinet agencies and senior members of the national media, among others. All expenses for Washington Week are provided by The Hearst Foundations; as stipulated in S.Res.324, no government funds are utilized.

Now more than 5,800 strong, alumni of the program continue to excel, often in public service. Among the many distinguished alumni are: Sen. Susan Collins, the first alumnus to be elected U.S. senator; U.S. Secretary of Transportation and former South Bend (Indiana) Mayor Pete Buttigieg; former Sen. Cory Gardner, the second alumnus to be elected U.S. senator and the first to be elected to the U.S. House of Representatives; former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, the first alumnus to be elected governor.

Each year, the Honorary Co-Chairs of the program are the vice president of the United States and the Senate majority and minority leaders.  Members of the U. S. Senate Youth Program 2021 Senate Advisory Committee include Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy. Past Senate co-chairs of the annual program representing Connecticut include Sen. Lowell Weicker (1974), Sen. Chris Dodd (1992) and Sen. Blumenthal in 2019. 

Senator Blumenthal told the students that year, “I know a lot of folks have probably been telling you that you are our future leaders. In fact, you are our present leaders. You are the here and now for this country. You are the people who are going to give us the conscience and conviction we need in this challenging time.”