American Legion Morris County

THE AMERICAN LEGION DEPARTMENT OF NEW JERSEY TRENTON, NEW JERSEY TO: COUNTY BOYS STATE CHAIRMEN POST BOYS STATE CHAIRMEN AMERICAN LEGION JERSEY BOYS STATE SUNDAY, JUNE 21 TO FRIDAY JUNE 26, 2026 – Our 80th ANNUAL SESSION It is hard to believe but it is Boys State time again! The sooner you start raising sponsorship money for your delegates, the easier it will be. After finding sponsorship support, you should focus on contacting your local schools for 2026 delegate nominations. We expect the 2026 session to be bigger and better than ever! New Jersey is one of the fastest growing Boys State Programs in the country thanks to all of you! Thank you for all your hard work. Our staff is already planning the 2026 session. Last year’s session was a huge success thanks to the many new ideas from you and your efforts in sending us the best delegates in the country. Our hope is that this year, you will make a big effort to include all high schools (public, private, and parochial) and home-schooled students in your sponsorships. With our ever-changing cities and counties, there are new schools opening all the time. Please reach out to them as early as possible!!! We have plenty of room for more delegates. The fee this year is $325.00 per delegate. This was approved at the annual meeting of the ALJBS Board of Trustees in September. Once again, our (very strong) suggestion/recommendation is for the Post to charge each sponsored delegate $50.00 of the $325.00 fee and the Post should contribute the remaining $275.00. To be clear, it is the Post’s responsibility to collect the $50.00 fee from the delegate/parents, and the Post should send the $325.00 payment to Headquarters in Trenton. The deadline for submitting sponsorship money and cards this year is MAY 15, 2026. By getting the sponsorship money in as soon as possible, we can invest it before we must pay Rider University. This helps us keep the fee low. Please go to aljbs.org for all the most current information on the Program. We have created a “Standard Operating Procedure” (SOP) for Post and County Boys State Chairman with very helpful information. We encourage you to read and use this. It can be found here: https://aljbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/2026-ALJBS-Post_County-Chairman-SOP.pdf. The following procedures should be followed concerning sponsorships: 1. Arrange for your Post and/or other organization(s) in your town/area to sponsor the delegates. There are many groups and individuals who would gladly sponsor delegates in full or in part to send a delegate to ALJBS. $325 (or $275 paid by the Post/Sponsor, $50 paid by the parent, as suggested) is a bargain for the education that these delegates receive. Many potential sponsors attended ALJBS. All you need to do is ask!!! 2. Complete the 3” x 5” sponsorship card and send it in with the full fee of $325.00 per delegate to the following address: American Legion Jersey Boys State, Building #5, 2nd Floor, 171 Jersey Street, Trenton, NJ 08611. The $50.00 fee collected by the Post from the delegates should be deposited into your Post account directly and should be used to offset the $325.00 you are sending to Headquarters. Do not send Headquarters the $50.00 fee collected from the delegates. You should send a check for $325.00 per delegate to Headquarters AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. 3. As a guideline, delegates should be high school juniors/rising high school seniors, have at least a “B” average, be involved in extracurricular activities, have some interest in politics and current events, and be a resident of OR student in New Jersey. A non resident of New Jersey is eligible to attend Jersey Boys State if they attend school in New Jersey. A New Jersey resident that attends school out of state is also eligible. Non-U.S. citizens may also attend Boys State if they attend school or live in New Jersey. Call us if you have any questions about eligibility by May 15, 2026. 4. After interviewing and selecting your delegates and alternates, have them complete and submit the application on-line through our web portal (supported by “Campsite”) as soon as possible after they are selected. Our registration system opens on January 1, 2026. All delegates will be required to register on Campsite and be “approved” by Headquarters before they are able to access their medical form. All applications must be uploaded to our web portal no later than May 31, 2026. over 5. Delegates must complete a medical form, which will be available on-line through our web portal. The delegates will receive instructions directly from ALJBS when and how to complete the medical form, which will also be posted on our website at ALJBS.org. The form will be completed based on a doctor’s visit within the last 12 months. NO applicant will be allowed to attend the Program if he has not completed this form. 6. Applications will not be accepted unless they are completely and properly filled out. The application system for the delegates will be open January 1, 2026. You and the delegates will be informed when the system opens, and updates will be posted on our website at ALJBS.org. PLEASE make sure applications are sent to us via our web portal. Regardless of sponsorship (by The American Legion alone or co-sponsor) the application, with the correct address, must be approved by the Boys State Chairman and/or Post Commander of the local Legion Post. The co-sponsor’s name and address, as well as the Legion’s, must be on the application when sent to us. Applications are to be filled out by the applicant only. DO NOT SIGN UNTIL YOU CHECK OVER THE APPLICATION AND HAVE MET THE DELEGATE. 7. Alternates will also be required to pre-register and complete their medical forms via our online portal (“Campsite”) ahead of the session. Alternates who show up at Boys State for registration at the 2026 session without having an application in the Boys State portal will not be admitted. Therefore, additional alternate blanks and registration cards will be sent to you when needed and requested. The alternate should know the name of the boy for whom he is an alternate and Post number to register. We will not process an application unless we have the correct information. This is your responsibility. 8. Each delegate registering on Sunday, June 21st must have his medical form completed on-line. PLEASE DO NOT SEND THE MEDICAL FORM TO HQ! The Medical Form must be completed on-line. REGISTRATION IS FROM 7:30 AM to 8:30 AM on June 21st. We suggest arriving at 7:00 am at Rider University. The delegates will be told where to go and what to do upon arrival. PLEASE CHECK THE ABOVE CAREFULLY. Since you are also responsible for the delegate’s transportation home, make sure they know the Program will end at approximately 4:00 PM Friday, June 26th. All delegates are REQUIRED to attend the graduation ceremony to successfully complete ALJBS. Early dismissal from the Program is not allowed. 9. We have and will be hosting several on-line information sessions for you via Zoom. Our next information session will be in early January to review the delegate application process and answer your questions. Please be on the look-out for those meeting dates/times. 10. The Director reserves the right to send a Delegate home without graduating if he does not meet the qualifications stated and does not obey the rules and regulations of Boys State. If a Delegate is sent home under these circumstances, a letter will be sent to his parents, his principal, and the sponsoring organization, notifying them of this action, they will not be eligible for our college credit program, and it may impact their college admissions process. 11. Permission to leave the Program during the session may only be granted and approved by the DIRECTOR on a very limited basis. Delegates are expected to stay at the Program for the entire week. In addition, delegates are expected to stay until the end of the Program 4:00 PM Friday, June 26th. Under no circumstance are delegates allowed to leave the Program early. If the parents have any questions, they should be directed to Director David Bagatelle at director@aljbs.org directly. This is not a decision that can be made by the Post or County Boys State Chairmen. DO NOT ASSUME that a Delegate will be permitted to leave the campus for any period while Boys State is in session. That authority and decision rests solely with the Director. County orientations are meant to be informative for the delegates, alternates, and their parents. They should not be political or encourage delegates to run for any office. Every delegate and alternate are required to attend a county orientation. Boys State staff members are available to help you with your orientations, if you wish. Once again, use ALJBS.org as a tool to help you and your applicants/delegates. We will also be conducting virtual orientations in addition to your in-person County Orientations once again in 2026. If you have any questions, please feel free to call Legion Headquarters at (609) 695-5418 and speak with Tammie. You may also direct question to admissions@aljbs.org. Thank you as always for your hard work and support. THEODORE HOWARTH, JR. PRESIDENT cthowarth@verizon.net 856-571-4441 DAVID BAGATELLE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR director@aljbs.org 646-408-1032