BRRRRRING! A bell marks the end of another day of middle school, and suddenly the once-deserted narrow hallway, where six youths sit cross-legged on the gray-carpeted floor, is filled with a hundred other students. The six halt in midsentence and quickly grab their belongings -- a heavy black bag, pens, notebooks, clipboards, a tape recorder, a camera -- and disappear into a nearby classroom amid

While seasoned politicians resort to kissing babies or begging for corporate contributions to gain a national audience, a 15-year-old simply wrote 434 powerful words. Those words propelled her to a coveted speaking spot during the Republican National Convention in St. Paul at 6:30 p.m. today.