Are you underclassmen at North Penn High School? Are you interested in pursuing a degree or career in politics, law, or government? Don’t know how to move forward? North Penn’s course and club offerings are available to you!

The Knight Crier is running a recurring feature on specific classes, clubs, and people to reach out to help students furthermore unravel their interests and achieve their educational/career goals after high school. In this installment, we will cover what opportunities North Penn has to offer for students interested in the various fields of law and government.

AP Classes

AP Comparative Government, a year-long elective AP course provides seniors with a similar experience to a college-level comparative government and politics course. This course provides students the opportunity to critically analyze and compare the differing political systems and realities around the world. There are six central countries ’ governments of focus which are: Great Britain, Russia, China, Iran, Mexico, and Nigeria.

AP Economics, a year-long elective AP course provides juniors and seniors with a similar experience to a college-level macroeconomic/microeconomics course. Familiarity with concepts like national income, production, factor markets, and price determination helps students advance their knowledge of the government’s role in modern-day economic performance and growth whether through legislative changes or taxes/subsidies. Here at North Penn, students take both the Microeconomics and Macroeconomics AP Exams at the end of the year. It helps to have a solid mathematical foundation before taking this class.

AP U.S. Government, a year-long elective AP course provides seniors with a similar experience to a college-level U.S. government and politics course. Rather than studying various countries’ political systems in comparative government, this course is solely focused on the United States political system and political theory in America. Understanding key concepts, patterns of political processes, and structures of government are integral to this course. By the AP exam, students will have critically examined nine foundational documents: The Declaration of Independence, The Articles of Confederation, The Constitution, Brutus No. 1, Federalist Paper No. 10, Federalist Paper No. 51, Federalist Paper No. 70, Federalist Paper No. 78, and Letter from a Birmingham Jail.

AP U.S. History, a year-long elective AP course provides sophomores with a learning experience similar to a college-level introductory United States history course. The course is focused on history from the year 1450 onwards, closely examining specific periods like the American Revolution, the Jacksonian period, the Civil War and Reconstruction, Populism and Progressiveness, the New Deal, and domestic changes post WWII. This is a reading and writing intensive course. 

Elective Classes

Contemporary Global Issues is a semester-long Social Studies elective that allows students to study relevant analysis on major global conflicts, economic developments and trends, human rights, and the impact the U.S. has on the rest of the world both politically and economically. This course offers students different perspectives on different political landscapes worldwide and invokes problem-solving ideology.

Debate is a semester-long English elective that covers the philosophical definition of beliefs, presenting an argument conveying a specific justified belief and arguing that your justified belief is correct. Students will have the opportunity to debate three times in the semester as well as do preliminary research and presentations before debates start as preparation for the debate stage. This course is crucial in developing critical thinking and reasoning skills whilst improving presentation and persuasive techniques. For more information, check out this article. 

Clubs

Student Government Association/Class Cabinet is a great opportunity to help understand your peers’ perspectives on school events and it is also helpful in building a foundation for planning, organizing, and understanding the funding and logistics of starting and running events. Not only is being a part of North Penn’s SGA or your respective class cabinet a great way to build the soft skills mentioned above but it is also such a fun time as well. Decision-making and collaboration skills are key in these types of organizations and they are also significant in the world of government.

Mock Trial is “a multifaceted competition where students are learning acting skills, rules of evidence, how to present in a court, and most importantly, how to be on a team. We cover criminal and civil law, so you are exposed to many aspects of the legal profession. It is a great experience that will challenge you like a law school student and actual attorney,” Vice President Tarun Iyengar says. 

Model United Nations “provides a perfect platform for students wanting to go into Law/Government because it gives them the chance to hone their skills in argumentation and advocacy. Through debates and the challenge of defending their viewpoints, kids can gain practical experience and have fun while doing it,” Senior Pragya Sinha says. 

People to contact!

Mr. Brian Haley | [email protected] 

Mr. Haley has been a passionate government and politics teacher, and the advisor of the Mock Convention/Mock Trial team here at North Penn ever since 1998- before that he earned his Juris Doctorate Degree from Villanova University in 1985 and spent ten years at a practicing lawyer. That said, Haley is one of the most knowledgeable political minds that has ever stepped foot in North Penn. This build-up of experience gives Haley a large connection pool and access to certain contacts if any student is interested in some type of apprenticeship or internship related to government positions- Mr. Brian Haley is the man to contact.

Mr. Christopher Frey | [email protected] 

The current director of student activities and CHIP (community-hosted internship program) Mr. Frey is also another great North Penn staff member to keep in contact with if a student is interested in some type of internship or job-shadowing experience. The CHIP program has two options- 40 hours or a 70-hour program that ensures students build up experience in a field or position of their interest. Certain positions under a field of government could be job-shadowing attorneys or local judges, or interning for a local Congressman.