In February of this year, current Student Government Leaders began their term with high hopes, good intentions, and thoughtful promises to execute during the next year. Their ideas ranged from increasing food options, new spirit days, competition-based events, and a focus on student input. With a couple of months under their belt, let’s take a look at what they have accomplished so far.
One of the main focuses of Student Government is building school spirit. During the Spring Season, these current representatives planned their first spirit day, introducing a new addition they called the Necklace Game. On the morning of the pep rally students were handed a beaded necklace and in the periods leading up to the event, they played rock-paper-scissors against their classmates to win more beads. The two students with the most necklaces faced off at the pep rally for a prize. This game “encouraged friendly competition and increased the crowd’s involvement in the pep rally activities,” School President Layden Kennedy ’25 explained. Students agree that the game was a nice addition to the pep rally, ”I thought that the necklace game was a lot of fun… It encouraged students to interact with each other and generated more school spirit,” SHS student Victoria Roberts ’26 added.
Another main focus of School Government has been bringing their Hot Topics Initiative to life. “The Hot Topics program aims to educate students on engaging in respectful civil discourse. In light of increasing societal polarization, we found it essential to provide opportunities for students to discuss controversial issues constructively,” Kennedy added. In collaboration with School Administration, this initiative aims to foster empathy and respect within the school community around sensitive topics. The program is set to begin this coming fall.
Following up with their campaign promises, School Government has some exciting news to announce regarding increasing food options. “We met with the head of the food-providing company for SHS. We made changes based on advice and critiques we had been hearing from the student body, such as a lack of food during 2nd lunch,” Kennedy mentioned. Thanks to them, some new items have been added such as Poppi soda and Cheez-Its. Student leaders also communicated the importance of larger quantities of popular items such as chicken nuggets to meet student demand. On an even more exciting note, plans have been finalized to install a smoothie bar over the summer, ready for use by next school year.
On a day-to-day basis, the School Government had been busy planning the successful school Carnival in April as well as Non-Sibi Day. They are also preparing for orientation and other miscellaneous activities to come at the beginning of the next school year. “[O]ur beginning of the year is fast and furious. In September, October, those first two months, we have everything from all our new class government elections…[to] leadership training for the newly elected officers. [And] we have homecoming, which involves a spirit week and pep rally,” School Government Advisor Benjamin Sawyer explained.
Looking towards the future, the best is yet to come. “Through peer suggestions, we want to host events and activities with students and clubs to prioritize a balance between academics and self-health, especially as we have seen in recent years how the mental health of teens has worsened across the country,” School Government Treasurer Anish Mehta ’26 added.
With the year coming to an end, it’s clear to say that the School Government has made strides to improve our school community with great things to come. “As a whole, I am incredibly proud to present the work and efforts of this government thus far, and I believe it is the product of our hard work, and diligence in serving the student body. We are honored to be able to represent this school and its values, and know that we will continue to deliver positive changes to our community for the remainder of our term,” Kennedy acknowledged.
