A Week in the Life of the Student Government
The student government poses with Mr. Kolotkin, Dr. Quinlan and Assistant Principal of Organization Alan Stack, all wearing yellow to raise awareness for childhood cancer survivors. Photo: Katherine Omari
By ERISA MANI
The ballot box Google forms pile up as Midwood’s teens, eager to vote for their next leaders, and with leftover Celsius pumping through their bodies, hit the final button: submit. New lunch options? Extra periods for naptime? Many hopes and questions remain as the results of the school election are announced over the loud speaker.
Phew! Now that we finally know who our new student government (SGO) is, we can all sit back and relax while these young individuals help to coordinate cool events and blow up your Instagram with fun videos. But what does their life really look like?
The SGO meets nearly every day, during whichever period the students are free. Whether it’s first or tenth, you’ll always find someone from the team working hard in Room 161 to coordinate events and keep the student body as active as possible.
Coordinator of Student Affairs Lawrence Kolotkin said, “It’s a lot of little things that we have to do when it comes to planning and then executing those plans.”
From October 5 to October 9, I followed the SGO to take a deeper look at a week in the life of some of Midwood’s hardest working Hornets.
The week started off with a look at potential freshmen officers. Senior Comptroller Marvens Celius said, “We reviewed the freshmen applications and decided who had a creative approach or personality style we liked.”
Members of the SGO also worked on advertising for the club fair, making sure the clubs were organized in their prospective places while working on slides for the club town hall.
Meanwhile, Junior President Brandon Ho worked on creating a poster for Principal Robert Quinlan in honor of National Principals Month. “We took the poster around and got it signed by students, teachers, and staff,” said Ho.
“Today was a busy day but definitely one that left me feeling fulfilled,” said Senmeri Angaza, the senior president. “The busiest days allow you to feel your impact throughout the school in real time.”
And so, after Monday ended, Tuesday rolled in with a more subtle work load. During the last few periods, the team hosted the club town hall to prep all parties for the club fair. “The town hall was definitely a success,” Senior Club Liaison Susan Zhang said. “It was great getting to meet all the leaders.”
On Wednesday, the SGO had their weekly meeting, where among other things they distributed boards to club leaders, finalized locations for each club in the fair, and filmed promotional videos for the event, Junior Vice President Kayla Lau explained.
Thursday was hectic as the day of the fair had finally arrived. Once school ended, club leaders gathered and gave their boards some final touch-ups. Tables were set up to host students looking for new activities and communities. The planning paid off as the fair went smoothly.
Nadia Dudalenko, the senior club liaison officer, said, “I think my favorite part was actually seeing the layout I spent so much time working on come to life and watching students walk around and find clubs that genuinely interested them.”
“Since this is my first year as a part of SGO, I feel very honored to be surrounded by such a great team,” said Sophomore Vice President Becky Lin.
Lastly, on Friday, the SGO finished up by placing the club boards back into the storage room and reviewing the freshman representatives’ speech videos. “We each watched and reviewed them on our own time to get to know more about our candidates and to put names to faces,” Mayor Zhiqi Li said.
Experiencing a shared responsibility and camaraderie like this is invaluable, the officers said.
Angaza said, “Being a member of the student government allows me to appreciate and help the entirety of our school.”
Celius said, “I'm glad we have a team that works well together so even the busy days feel fun.”
Ho said, “Being a part of SGO is something very sentimental to me and something I hope to look back on in ten years while saying that I’ve filled my high school years with dedication, love, and great memories.”
Freshman Alika Gun added, “I like knowing that I have a voice that people are willing to hear, and I think it’s so fun to be a part of these events.”
It may seem nerve wracking to put yourself out there and take on such a role, but freshman Amelina Buño said you’ll be fine as long as you remember to “always be true to yourself and be genuine.”
So, the next time you think about doing something grandly ambitious in your life, like running for president or mayor, take with you these words from Mr. Kolotkin: “If you don’t do it, it’s a no. If you do do it, it’s a maybe.”