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A Lunenburg teen recently spent some time in Richmond serving in the Virginia House of Delegates.

Audrey Lacks, 13-year-old daughter of Kristin and Michael Lacks, served as a page during the recent session of the Virginia General Assembly.

Each year the Speaker of the House of Delegates appoints 13- and 14-year-olds from across the Commonwealth to serve as House pages during the regular session of the General Assembly.

These young people assist the members of the House of Delegates, the House Clerk’s staff, and other legislative staff in the daily duties required for the successful operation of the House of Delegates during the session.

During her time as a House page, Lacks was awarded the Above and Beyond Award.

“We absolutely loved having Audrey work with our office,” said Delegate Joseph McNamara. “She is so intelligent and kind, and we welcome her back anytime.”

Anne Riordan, an administrative coordinator for the House of Delegates, also praised Lacks for how well she took over the job as an administrative assistant.

Serving as a page provides teens an experience and an educational opportunity. However, it is also a 40-hour per week paid position for which they are making a firm commitment to report to work every day.

Just because students are working as pages, school work does not stop.

A mandatory study hall is held every Monday through Thursday evening from 7 p.m. until 9 p.m.

Certified teachers supervise the pages and help individual students as needed. Study hall teachers do not provide classroom instruction and do not administer tests and exams. Pages are responsible for arranging the preferred method of taking tests and exams with their schools and teachers. They must also make arrangements with their schools and teachers to maintain their schoolwork, including any required tutoring.