ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Two Calvert County Public Schools students will serve as student pages during the 2026 Maryland General Assembly legislative session, scheduled from January 14 to April 13 in Annapolis. Northern High School senior Luke Grover and Patuxent High School student Morgan Castro-Arndt earned appointments to the competitive program following a fall application and interview process.
Huntingtown High School student Madelyn Stay was selected as the county’s alternate.
Credit: Calvert County Public Schools
The Maryland General Assembly Student Page Program, administered by the Department of Legislative Services, places high-achieving high school juniors and seniors in the State House for two nonconsecutive weeks during the 90-day session. Pages assist legislators and staff by delivering messages, distributing documents, preparing committee rooms, and observing floor sessions and hearings from designated areas.
“This is a great opportunity for our students to learn first-hand about the legislative process and engage with Maryland’s senators and representatives,” said Molly Wanamaker, Calvert County Public Schools Supervisor of Student Services.
Each year the program appoints 105 pages and 36 alternates statewide, with representation drawn from public, private, and home-school students across all 23 counties and Baltimore City. Calvert County traditionally receives two page slots and one alternate position.
Pages work Monday through Thursday, typically from 8 a.m. until the chambers adjourn, which can extend into evening hours during the final weeks. Participants receive a $500 stipend per week served, plus mileage reimbursement for the daily commute to Annapolis. The program requires students to maintain academic progress through arrangements with their home schools.
Established in 1970 by then-House Speaker Thomas Hunter Lowe with approval from the Maryland State Board of Education, the initiative originally aimed to expose students to state government operations while providing logistical support to lawmakers. Over five decades the program has trained thousands of future civic leaders, including several who later served as delegates or senators.
Calvert County students undergo a local selection process coordinated by the school system’s Student Services office. Applicants submit essays, résumés, teacher recommendations, and transcripts before advancing to interviews conducted by a panel that includes school administrators and, in some years, sitting legislators.
Grover, Castro-Arndt, and Stay will join pages from across Maryland for mandatory orientation in early January 2026. During their appointed weeks they will wear official navy blazers with the State House seal and be assigned to either the House of Delegates or Senate based on scheduling needs.
The 2026 session marks the second year of the 448th General Assembly following the 2024 elections. Pages will witness the introduction of roughly 2,500 bills, budget deliberations totaling more than $63 billion, and committee work on issues ranging from education funding to environmental policy.
Calvert County has maintained consistent representation in the program since its inception. Recent CCPS alumni who served as pages include Northern graduates who later attended the U.S. Naval Academy and University of Maryland, citing the Annapolis experience as influential in career choices involving public service and law.
Detailed program guidelines, application timelines for future years, and historical rosters are available through the Department of Legislative Services website.
Calvert County Public Schools serves approximately 15,000 students across 13 elementary, six middle, and four high schools in the northern, central, and southern areas of the county. Northern High in Owings, Patuxent High in Lusby, and Huntingtown High form the county’s comprehensive high school network, each offering college-preparatory, career-technology, and extracurricular pathways.
The page appointments continue a tradition of Calvert students earning statewide recognition in academics, arts, and leadership programs during the 2025-26 school year.
