For immediate release
Information: Jeff Harris (800-334-5353 x225; jharris@jsa.org)
Oct. 15, 2009 – A husband-and-wife team who have dedicated their professional careers – and almost 40 years of their lives – to helping high school students grow into leaders and learn about democracy, public service and politics are to be honored on Saturday for their commitment to a non-profit organization.
Richard and Karen Prosser will be celebrated by alumni of the Junior State of America program at an Oct. 17 brunch to be held at the Top of the Mark Hopkins Hotel in San Francisco.
Since the Prossers have led Junior Statesmen, almost one-half million high school students have gone through both the school-year and summer programs.
Junior Statesmen of America is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year, providing high school students with leadership opportunities through its school-year program. Students have organized themselves into 10 geographic states and territories, each with elected executive and legislative branches of government, as well as an appointed judiciary. During summers, the group offers political science and other leadership courses at college campuses around the United States.
“Karen and Richard Prosser are a one-two punch convincing high school kids to care about current events and public affairs,” said Mike McCurry, an alumni of the program and the former White House press secretary. “No two people have had a greater influence on hundreds of future leaders in California and beyond.”
McCurry has served as chairman of the foundation’s board of trustees since 2000. He attended JSA Summer School in 1970 and was governor of the Junior State in 1971-1972. He served in the U.S. State Department as press secretary from 1993-1995 and in the Clinton administration from 1995-1998. McCurry is currently a principal with Public Strategies Washington Inc.
“As someone who has made a career out of working on campaigns in California and Washington, D.C., I credit Richard and Karen for making politics interesting and fun when I was a high school student,” said Ted Green, a project director at the issue advocacy firm of Woodward & McDowell of Los Angeles. “What they taught me stuck.” Green is president of the board of directors of the Junior Statesmen Foundation.
In addition to McCurry and Green, the couple will be feted by former U.S. Attorney Gen. Edwin Meese, former California Assemblyman Ted Lempert, former Palo Alto Mayor Gary Fazzino and former Richmond (Calif.) City Councilman Alex Evans, as well as almost 100 other friends and well-wishers.
Richard Prosser first became involved with Junior Statesmen at Napa High School in Northern California almost 50 years ago. He served as a regional mayor in the student-run organization and in its state senate. After completing an undergraduate degree at Sacramento State, Richard joined the Junior Statesmen Foundation as executive director in 1969, supervising the student program and acting as director of the summer schools. During his tenure at the foundation, Richard took a masters’ degree in mass communications at San Jose State University.
During Richard’s time as executive director (he was named national public affairs director in 2007 and Arizona program director in 2008) the student-run group grew from fewer than 1000 active students participating in California and Washington state to chapters in 450 high schools with more than 10,500 dues-paying members from virtually every state in the union.
Karen Prosser took over the summer schools’ direction in 1975 after volunteering with the organization for six years. Under her watch, the summer school program grew from serving about three dozen high school students at one campus to a program that last summer provided more than 1000 high school students with educational opportunities at Georgetown, Yale, Princeton and Stanford universities.
More than four percent of those students were from the U.S. territories, including the U.S. Virgin Islands and Samoa, in a program that Karen initiated and championed. Karen retired from the foundation in 2007 but continues to volunteer.
The San Mateo residents have two adult children, Amy and Edward, both of whom participated in JSA.
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ABOUT THE JUNIOR STATESMEN FOUNDATION INC.
Supporting a program founded in 1934, The Junior Statesmen Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit educational corporation that assists the high school students who lead the Junior State of America. The foundation also sponsors various summer programs, including summer schools held at four college campuses nationwide, and a series of summer symposia that provide high school students with college-level learning opportunities. The foundation has paid staff in offices in San Mateo, Calif., and Washington, D.C.
ABOUT THE JUNIOR STATE OF AMERICA
The largest high school student-run organization in the country, JSA has chapters in more than 450 high schools and in 2009 had 10,500 dues-paying members. The group has organized itself into 10 geographic states and territories, each with elected executive and legislative branches of government. In addition to hosting high school campus-based thought-talks and debates, the group holds statewide conventions three times per year, where students introduce legislation, which they debate and vote for and against. JSA also hosts adult community leaders who speak to the students on relevant topics and take student questions.
