American Legion Auxiliary Girls State is a nonpartisan program that teaches young women responsible citizenship and love for God and Country. Since the inception of the Girls State program in 1937, nearly 1 million young women have had the opportunity to learn firsthand how their state and local government works. The program has grown from a few hundred participants to nearly 20,000 annually. High school girls who have completed their junior year spend an intensive week of study, working together as self-governing citizens. These young women learn government by actually creating a mythical state through the election of public officials on local, county and state levels and then by carrying out the duties of these respective offices. Two citizens from each Girls State are selected to participate in the annual Girls Nation program.