Stress at MGA By: Paine Gronemeyer

           

            At MGA, one of the main things most people feel at MGA is stress. Most people will experience stress at MGA at one point or another, at any position, even Anna Sexauer, the Youth Governor, is probably stressed. Even though there is not any bills regarding stress, all the delegates will feel it, especially when trying to get a bill from the house to the senate or vice versa. According to the American Psychological Association (apa.org), two out of three Americans are significantly stressed by the future of our nation, and 57% are stressed out during the 2016 political climate. Public speaking is also a big part of politics and MGA, during debate almost everyone will have the floor for some time where they will speak for and against bills, and for many students public speaking can be a bit scary, especially in a big chamber of more than 100 people.

Surprisingly, there is stress with reporters. Pulling out bill patrons and delegates for interviews can be stressful, as well as talking with people you have not met before. Getting articles by deadline is another added stress, there is often a penalty if a reporter has not submitted their article on time. Multiple students gave their input on stress at MGA. Most students had some sort of stress or pressure placed on them, but some were not stressed. The most stress came from the lobbyists, saying “I feel that I have the obligation to inform my committee on the various bulls and it is stressful when I do not have the proper information that will influence the particular committee.” and fellow lobbyists pointing out that the stress derives from the standards which are set by the group. Delegates from the Underclassman Legislature were also interviewed, saying that they were “Nervous at first, we did not know what to do, but when a mock debate was called and it was helpful and we were able to voice our ideas and opinions.”. One delegate was also quoted, stating that “I am not just a guy sitting here, I am a part of the group.”. The last group of students which were interviewed were the Delegates and Bill Patrons, who seemed pretty relaxed, some were just trying to get a feel for what legislature in Virginia was like and hoping to get an overall view of politics, and others were just happy their bill was passed and were looking forward to discussion later on.

            In conclusion, there are positions like lobbyists who carry the biggest of the burdens, compared to the delegates who are more focused on voting for bills and testing out some public speaking and voicing their opinion. Reporters also face some sort of stress at one time or another, from article deadline to pulling a person you have never met out of committee. Overall, stress is an important factor relating to debate and MGA in general, and hopefully it will be lessened by more experience throughout the weekend.