By: Isabella Faubion

Upon taking those first steps out of the elevator, because who would choose to walk up nine flights of stairs, onto the Taft floor you would find a map of Nebraska proudly displayed on the cork board. Along with it 36 thumbtacks pushed into the board representing where all 36 Girls State citizens of floor 9 call home. 

The ninth floor was the first floor to complete check-in for every lady assigned to that floor. This offered the opportunity for the girls to get right into introductions and get to know each other. Each girl had to answer three questions: What is your name? What school are you from? What would be your walk up song if you did baseball? That last question would lead the girls to bond over their shared love of Taylor Swift and High School Musical- though there is a floor-wide debate on which movie is the best. While the ladies might disagree on movies, they all agreed that the Taft floor is Top-Dog. 

Many of the girls might have been worried about campaigning on a floor with girls they didn’t know, but that worry soon washed away when city campaigning began. Girls began campaigning using many strategies to get their name out. Some handed out candy, some had really bad puns, and one used the fact that she had the biggest room on the floor. Almost all the girls campaigned for a city office, this might lead you to believe that the “Penthouse” is pooling with combativeness, but the exact opposite is true. When the State and County campaigning began, the ninth floor became the hotspot for the diverse personalities at Girls State. The standout being a cover of Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas is You” by Taft’s own Mariah.

If you were to enter the “Penthouse” from the elevator, or the stairs you would likely see 36 ladies talking about future plans, sharing their hobbies, or taking BeReals in line for activities. The Top-Dogs can best be described by a quote their Junior Counselor Molly said at the first floor meeting: “Taft is family.”