Governor Bill Lee returned to Tennessee Tech University last week to speak at Tennessee American Legion Boys State, a weeklong leadership and citizenship program for rising high school senior boys from across the state.
Lee delivered remarks during the program’s inaugural ceremony, held in Tech’s Hooper Eblen Center. The ceremony marks the culminating event of the week, during which a student is sworn in as Boys State governor following an election among attendees.
There, Lee encouraged students to engage in the civic process and demonstrate leadership in their own communities, explaining that “For our system to work, the people of our country need to and should engage.”
“The future of our state and nation depends on young people who know how government works, what civic rights they’re entitled to, and how to exercise their rights and be active participants in our democracy,” Lee continued.
This year marks 60 years since Boys State began its partnership with Tech. The program has been held on Tech’s campus continuously since 1965, except in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Robert Owens, Tech’s senior executive for access, belonging and community outreach, served as director of this year’s Boys State. Harry Ingle, Tech’s executive director for student affairs, served as dean of counselors, and Katie Aikens, Tech’s dean of students and assistant vice president for strategic initiatives, served as program administrator. Various Tech staff members and students also served as counselors, support personnel and in other roles.
“Tennessee American Legion Boys State is one of the top programs in the nation, and we are honored to host it right here at Tennessee Tech,” Owens said. “Boys State is unique and valuable because students experience government by actually participating in it.”
He continued, “From Governor Lee’s visit to the students’ mock elections to the Tennessee Supreme Court hearing cases right here on our campus, Boys State gives these young men not only a truly immersive leadership experience, but also exposure to our great university. I love meeting Tech students who tell me that their first encounter with our campus was through Boys State.”
A familiar face on Tech’s campus, Lee has previously served as commencement speaker and guest speaker at the College of Business’s annual Fall Celebration Dinner, among other events. Most recently, he spoke at the grand opening of the university’s Ashraf Islam Engineering Building last fall, where he praised Tech as “a great institution … that is a leader nationally.”
