Amrit Pagar, a senior and Air Force JROTC cadet at Hixson High School, attended the 2019 American Legion Boys Nation in the Washington, D.C. area, July 19-26. He was selected as one of two senators to represent the State of Tennessee.
Boys Nation is an annual American Legion program that includes civic training, leadership development and a focus on Americanism. Mr. Pagar was previously elected county executive at the 2019 Tennessee Boys State, which had roughly 440 participants.
Additionally, he was appointed adjutant general. He was joined by Trevor Parsons of Cumberland County High School in representing the State of Tennessee at Boys Nation.
At Hixson, Mr. Pagar has served as junior class president, orchestra manager and currently serves as the Air Force JROTC Cadet Group deputy commander. His activities include cross country, track, soccer, Air Force JROTC and National Honor Society. He is a recipient of the AFJROTC Distinguished Cadet Badge and a graduate of the Mountaineer Cadet Officer Leadership School. A resident of Hixson, Mr. Pagar plans to attend the University of Tennessee at Knoxville to receive a bachelor's degree in computer science and pursue a career in the U.S Air Force.
During their eight days at Boys Nation, 100 senators (two from each state with the exception of Hawaii, and the District of Columbia) learned from a hands-on approach how the U.S. Senate and the federal government function. Young men are divided into two political parties, the Federalists and the Nationalists, each of which conducts a party convention, sets a platform and nominates members for elected offices, including Boys Nation president, vice president and party leaders. Each senator is required to also write, introduce and debate a bill of his choosing before an appropriate Senate committee, and if successful at that level, the legislation will be voted on by the whole Senate. Bills passing the Senate are later signed or vetoed by the Boys Nation president.
The young men had the opportunity to tour the National Mall, including the Lincoln Memorial, Vietnam Wall and Korean War Memorial. They presented a wreath at Arlington National Cemetery, saw the Iwo Jima Memorial and visited Capitol Hill for meetings with their State’s U.S. Senators. Senators also attended a dinner hosted by American Legion National Commander Brett Reistad. Additionally, they had an opportunity to visit the White House and personally meet with Vice President Pence.
This year’s crop of Boys Nation senators represent the finest of nearly 20,000 incoming seniors who attended the 50 annual Boys State programs. Famous Boys Nation alumni include former President Bill Clinton, actor Donal Logue, Govs. Chris Christie and Scott Walker and Sens. Mike Lee and Tom Cotton. Notable Boys State alumni include Tom Brokaw, Michael Jordan, Rush Limbaugh, Jon Bon Jovi, Garth Brooks, Neil Armstrong, Roger Ebert and Justice Samuel Alito.