American Legion Jersey Boys State educates our youth in the duties, privileges, rights and responsibilities of American citizenship. Boys State endeavors to provide a foundation for understanding self-government, a rational approach toward the solution of public questions, and a live faith in the ideals and processes of democracy. The program of training and instruction consists of extending the boy-citizen's acquaintance with the background of American ideals, expanding his knowledge of the underlying principles of government organization, and by means of active participation in the government of Boys State helps him to set up constructive ideals toward all phases of representative government.

As separate corporations, Boys States vary in content and method of procedure, but each and every Boys State adheres to the basic concept of the program - that of teaching government from the township to the state level. ALJBS is in no sense a disciplinary or recreational camp. Only boys with outstanding qualifications in character and leadership, who will have a serious attitude toward an intensive citizenship training program should be selected. Consequently, it is assumed that all boys who are accepted and report for the annual session are representative of the ideals enumerated, know why they are here, and will give their wholehearted cooperation to the program of instruction and functional citizenship made available to them.

High school juniors are selected in early spring by local American Legion Posts to attend the program. Each post raises funds in different ways to sponsor their delegates and as a result, posts from around the State of New Jersey send a varying number of delegates from zero to ten or more. In most cases, expenses associated with attending this program are paid by funds from the sponsoring American Legion Post, however a local business or another the delegate(s). In some cases, American Legion Posts will leave the selection process up to teachers and guidance counselors of the local high school, however an American Legion Post must take part in the process for each delegate.

Sponsorship by County 2002-2008*

# Delegates County Name 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 Atlantic 12 10 11 13 11 22 26 Bergen 102 108 105 134 135 115 93 Burlington 90 87 86 92 98 106 104 Camden 70 69 63 70 79 70 71 Cape May 2 3 4 3 5 4 6 Cumberland 5 6 6 6 4 4 5 Essex 29 35 31 38 42 33 40 Gloucester 21 24 26 23 22 23 23 Hudson 15 15 19 17 21 26 22 Hunterdon 15 13 14 13 12 14 14 Mercer 57 48 63 66 46 42 54 Middlesex 44 43 55 55 50 50 42 Monmouth 37 42 35 32 36 39 41 Morris 86 87 87 93 85 83 84 Ocean 47 36 32 45 49 55 46 Passaic 59 55 57 61 71 58 66 Salem 17 13 12 14 17 15 14 Somerset 24 19 22 15 21 16 26 Sussex 27 21 23 22 25 21 28 Union 17 18 18 19 20 19 22 Warren 18 16 19 19 17 20 17 Total 794 768 788 850 866 835 844

* - Statistics based on number of delegates that arrived and remained throughout the week from numbers obtained and maintained by the Technology Committee's software and database systems.