Suzanne Stewart
Staff Writer
Pocahontas County High School senior Joey Van Meter is one of only two West Virginia students to be selected for the United States Senate Youth Program this year.
Van Meter first learned about the program last year when his social studies teacher, Wanda Hrabina, provided information to her students.
“I applied last year and I didn’t get to be a delegate,” he said. “I was a first alternate last year, and it encouraged me to apply again and see what would happen.”
To be selected for the program, students must fill out a qualifying questionnaire. From there, they submit an essay and video for judges to review.
The field is narrowed down to six semi-finalists who then have an interview with three judges who select two delegates to represent the state.
Van Meter and Elkins High School junior Julia Harlan will represent West Virginia in the 64th Annual United States Senate Youth Program and each will receive a $10,000 scholarship for undergraduate studies.
All the delegates from across the country will converge on Washington, D.C. March 7 through 14, 2026, for “Washington Week” – a weeklong networking event where student delegates will meet with high-level officials.
“We’ll meet some cabinet members, maybe a supreme court justice and we also talk to people who make important decisions,” Van Meter said. “Last year, I know they talked to some people at NASA. I don’t know yet what the program looks like this year, but I know that we meet and network, and we get to experience what Washington is like up close.”
Students who are selected as delegates have to be active in student council and hold leadership roles at their schools.
Van Meter has done just that for years. He is currently the senior class president, treasurer of the PCHS chapter of Skills USA and is vice president of the National Honor Society. He is also student representative on the Pocahontas County Board of Education.
“I started loving politics when I started being involved with my school and knowing what class president and student council president look like,” he said. “Then I started looking at more of a wider scale of city mayor or governor. Then when I found out about Senate Youth, that really made me interested in government.”
Van Meter plans to continue his studies in politics and hopes it will lead to a position as an elected official.
“I do plan on studying political science in college,” he said. “I’m not sure if I want to go to law school yet, but I do know that hopefully the road will lead to some kind of government official position at some point.”
Although he will only serve as a delegate for one year, Van Meter said he will be part of a large group of alumni who continue to support and participate in the program after they served.
“The alumni group is really strong,” he said. “They come back every few years. I know that one of the delegates from last year will present at some point during Washington Week. He’s going to Marshall University right now, so that’s how involved they continuously stay. I’m excited to network with alumni, too.”
Van Meter said his goal is to attend either Harvard University or Yale University.
He is the son of Bruce and Virginia Van Meter, of Marlinton.
Van Meter added that he hopes more PCHS students apply to be selected as a delegate and encourages his fellow Warriors to get involved locally, statewide and nationally when it comes to politics.
“We need more people from our rural communities that are connecting with our government and getting our name as West Virginians out there,” he said. “I do encourage anyone who qualifies to definitely apply and see what happens.”
