Kingston senior serves as Senate Page

While most people were enjoying their first Spring Break having fun since the lockdown, a local teen was learning about legislations. Marshall Ludrick is a senior at Kingston High School and was selected to participate in the Oklahoma State Senate Page Program. Marshall, the son of Brad and Ardeth Ludruck was nominated and selected for the program in spring 2020. The experience was cut short, however, when COVID-19 shut down everything his junior year.

Marshall was only able to serve for a few days when the state completely shut down. Even the Oklahoma State Capitol shut down.

The senior was selected by Kingston school administrators and teachers to serve in 2020 during his junior spring break. Even though Marshall’s first attempt was cut short due to the pandemic, the program officials requested Marshall to return this year.

Ardeth said Marshall “served as an Oklahoma State Senate Page for Senator David Bullard during the Oklahoma State Senate’s first session of the 58 ^th Legislature” during Spring Break, March 15 through 19, 2021.

Marshall, along with other selected pages, performed assigned tasks throughout the week. They assembled and distributed committee meeting packets, delivered messages for the Senators and their staff, and any other administrative duties that were requested.

Marshall had the opportunity to be present and hear the Senators and other officials speak on legislative issues. He also learned about public service.

The week ended on a fun note, while still learning. Marshall and the other pages had the opportunity to participate in a mock legislative activity called “Pageville.” The activity was done on the last day, and the pages assumed the roles of the legislators. The pages then studied, presented and debated a bill for legislation to consider.

The participants also spent the evenings having dinner with various Senators at Bricktown and visiting sites like the Oklahoma History Museum.

Ardeth said “Marshall thoroughly enjoyed his time serving as a page for Senator David Bullard.”

Marshall is the Class of 2021 Salutatorian with a GPA of 4.28. He plans on attending Southeastern Oklahoma State University to major in Kinesiology. He is also a basketball player and runs track.

About the program

The Oklahoma State Senate Page program is an opportunity for high school students to learn about and contribute to the legislative process. For a student to be nominated/selected, they must be an Oklahoman resident, a junior in high school who will be 16 or 17 – they cannot be 18 years old on or before the date of the program. The student must also carry the minimum GPA of 3.0.

There are four-page sessions for a student to participate. Two academic sessions run from early September through mid-January and from mid-January through early June. The summer sessions are split into three four-week sessions; one starts in early June and the other starts in early July.