Cardinals to send students to nation’s capital for 2nd year

The Arizona Cardinals announced the team will send 260 high school students to Washington, D.C. for the 2nd annual Civics Matters Arizona program.

The team is partnering with the Close Up Foundation and Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs to send the students on the team’s plane.

The trip will be a four-day, three-night event from June 14-17 giving the students a chance to take meetings with elected officials, issue deliberations and instructor-led visits to monuments, memorials, museums and government institutions, according to a press release.

Civics Matters Arizona targets a diverse group of students in Title 1 communities. It aims to engage students with their peers, the government and can help the teachers build dialogue in the classrooms.

In 2023, Civics Matters Arizona reached 1,500 high school students in the state and 260 were selected by their teachers to attend the trip.

There will be 30 schools, 20 school districts, 14 cities and six counties across Arizona represented on the trip.

The students had an essay contest in which they could write about (one) how young people can be involved in their community or government, (two) the political values that are most important to the health of our democracy, or (three) how we can build a “more perfect union,” according to the release.