Class meetings hold speeches for representatives

As the end of the school year approaches, the time came for the highly anticipated class representative elections for next year. The elections took place during X-period on May 11. Each grade had its own class meetings where the candidates would give their speeches. 9th grade was in Huss, 10th grade was in the choir room, and 11th grade was in the math commons.

The candidates were all very hopeful as they campaigned continuously and some hung up posters in the hallways. There are three open spots for USC, four for SAC, three for C3, and one for STC.

As the time for speeches arrived, the candidates became eager, nervous, and excited as all of them had to give a speech in front of their whole grade. USC representatives went first, followed by SAC, C3, and STC respectively.

Most candidates talked about their qualifications and goals for the next school year. Some went with more compelling speeches, while others took the humorous route. After each speech, the grade gave a round of applause and then the next candidate spoke.

For 9th grade, it was a relatively competitive election as there were multiple candidates for each spot. However, in the 10th and 11th-grade elections, most people ran unopposed.

Taylor Barkwell, a sophomore running for SAC rep, ran unopposed and actually decided to spontaneously run the morning of. However, Barkwell still had many goals she wanted to achieve. “I want to make the dances more inclusive so everybody feels comfortable […]I know that a lot of people choose to skip the dances because they don’t always enjoy them or because of the price,” Barkwell said.

Freshman Violet Pitcher ran for SAC rep among many others. It was her first time running for SAC and had many things she wanted to accomplish. “I really want to work with the students in making decisions and planning because it’s imperative that people’s voices are heard, that we get feedback from the community, and that it’s not just the committee themselves making decisions,” Pitcher said.

Zain Kizilbash, a 9th grader, ran for USC representative. It was also his first time running and he had a lot to say in his speech. “I mentioned the lack of transparency as well as the ability to execute things, both problems I saw with USC and problems that I thought could be reasonably fixed relatively easily while making a big change,” Kizilbash said. He also added that he hoped that it resonated with people.

Right after the speeches, election ballots were sent out in Google forms and were open until 3 PM. The winners were announced by Dean Tepp five hours later at 8:44 PM in Google Classroom.