House Page Service Applications

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For more than 150 years, messengers known as pages have served the United States Congress. Currently, there are 72 young men and women from across the nation who serve the House of Representatives as pages at any given time. Several incumbent and former Members of Congress as well as other prominent Americans have been congressional pages. Academic standing is among the most important criteria used in the final selection of pages.

 

Eligibility
The page program is strictly limited to juniors in high school. All applicants must be U.S. citizens who reach 16 years of age by the date of their appointment. Prospective pages are expected to be in good health, have strong stamina, and be comfortable in a job that requires the page to be constantly on his or her feet.

 

How to Apply
Students from California's Fifth District must have Congresswoman Matsui's endorsement to apply for a position. Since each Member of Congress is allocated a very small number of page positions, these endorsements are extremely competitive. Students interested in applying to serve as a House Page should contact Congresswoman Matsui's DC office for more information or to receive an application.

 

Page Program Duties
Pages serve principally as messengers. They carry documents between the House and Senate, Members' offices, committees, and the Library of Congress. They also prepare the House and Senate chambers for each day's business by distributing the Congressional Record and other documents related to the day's agenda, assist in the cloakrooms and chambers, and when Congress is in session, sit near the dais where they may be summoned by Members for assistance. Semester Pages report to work after classes and continue to 5pm or until the House adjourns for the day.

 

Students selected as Pages are asked to serve at least one full semester and may be asked to serve two semesters. The academic semesters are fall and spring and require attendance to the House of Representatives Page School. Students attending the fall and spring semesters are required to reside in the House Residence Hall. The summer program starts the around the second week of June and ends at the determination of the legislative work schedule. There are two summer sessions: 1st Session: June 11 - June 30 2nd Session: July 8 - August 3.

 

During the school year, pages are educated in the House Page School located in the Thomas Jefferson Building of the Library of Congress. The page school, which is accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, offers a junior-year high-school curriculum, college preparatory courses, and extracurricular and weekend activities. Classes are held five days a week, commencing at 6:45 a.m., prior to the convening of the House.

 

The dress requirement for males is navy blazer, long sleeved white shirt, dark gray slacks, dark socks, dark shoes, and a standard-issue tie (navy with red and white stripes). For females, a navy blazer, long sleeved white blouse, dark gray skirt or pants, dark shoes, appropriate hosiery and a standard-issue tie (navy with red and white stripes) that is provided during orientation.