Through a variety of programs - for high school and college leaders to first-time political candidates and influential business and community leaders - the Sorensen Institute has established itself as a powerful and effective force for restoring public confidence in our political system. At the heart of every Sorensen program are three central themes: ethics in public service, the power of bipartisanship, and a concentrated study of public policy issues.
Meet the esteemed alumni who completed our program and continued on to improve their communities.
Our leadership development programs focus on Virginia residents interested in becoming active in public service.
Know someone who would be a good candidate for a Sorensen program? Tell us about them!
This award will be presented annually to the individuals who model the spirit and mission of Sorensen through the trust, civility and respect they have consistently shown toward others. They create sustainable efforts toward the betterment of a more decent and tolerant civic life and culture for the people of the Commonwealth.
HSLP 2017: Day 15
Reported by Kibiriti Majuto (Charlottesville High School)
On this final day of our time here at the Sorensen Institute for Political Leadership, I can’t help but reflect back on the last two weeks. There are vivid images of uncountable visits to the Corner, games of wiffle ball, and last minute scrambling to get the nightly readings done.
HSLP 2017: Day 13
Reported by Carolyn Lemens (Annandale High School)
After a rather alarming early morning fire drill, the class headed back to the College of Nursing for the budget game, not yet aware of the difficulties that were to come.
We walked into the room confident that a budget would be easy to pass; we would simply need to cut unnecessary spending and raise needed revenue. Once we were divided into a house and a senate group, we quickly realized that things were not so simple.
HSLP 2017: Day 12
Reported by Neil Kothari (Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology)
HSLP 2017: Day 11
Reported by: Pari Kapila (Douglas S. Freeman High School)
Compared to other days at the HSLP, this day definitely felt like a slight break, as we were able to spend the morning working in our policy groups. Even though we’re starting to feel the weight of our policy projects on our shoulders, we had a calm, productive start to our day. Everyone was working hard on their policy proposals in order to reach the 10 p.m. deadline for the proposals' first draft. It was amazing to really see all of our work finally come together.
HSLP 2017: Day 10
Reported by Julianna Jones (New Kent High School)
After a restful Sunday we headed back into the classroom and kicked our culminating project work into high gear. We started off the day with three fascinating speakers. Samantha Sedivy works as a judicial law clerk for the sixth circuit of Virginia. She described the law school admissions process, her law school experience, and getting involved in politics in high school and college. She also told us of many interesting cases that she’s been involved with, including one about a man who faked his own death.
Check out the Sorensen political links page to discover new insights into politics in Virginia. We seek out new informational resources and frequently update the page with new links so bookmark it for later (or set it as your homepage if you like).