Many Pioneer students do not feel a strong bond with the school’s student council; it has an almost unnoticeable presence in the Pioneer community aside from the Academic Awards Ceremony, school dances, and frequent bake sales. Despite their limited presence at Pioneer, the student council, or rather, one person, is responsible for one thing that many seniors take an interest in: the class president speech.
Students are appointed to the student council by going through an interview process with several teachers. The nearly 100 individuals appointed to the student council are allowed to vote on the senior class president, who is also the president of student council. Last year, less than a third of the members of student council showed up to the meeting where the 2017 student council officers were elected. This is an incredibly small amount of people putting in the effort to vote for something that will have a lasting impact on Pioneer.
The class president gives a speech at commencement, which people will look back on years later. The class president is also responsible for planning class reunions, so the position really does go beyond the president’s time at Pioneer.
The seniors who show up to their last senior class meeting get to vote for a staff member to speak at their commencement ceremony. They do not, however, get to vote for a member of their own class to speak at their commencement, because that honor is awarded to the student council president from the student council. If seniors voted for the student council president, it would ensure that this speech is given by someone the majority of those who voted chose.
Some claim that students should not choose the senior class president because it would be a popularity contest, rather than the best person for the job, but that is exactly what the vote for staff member graduation speaker is — a “popular” teacher is selected. Just as no individual has met every teacher in Pioneer, no student has met every person in his or her grade. If all this is going to be is a popularity contest, then let the graduating class decide who they want to hear speak at their own graduation.
Students are appointed to the student council by going through an interview process with several teachers. The nearly 100 individuals appointed to the student council are allowed to vote on the senior class president, who is also the president of student council. Last year, less than a third of the members of student council showed up to the meeting where the 2017 student council officers were elected. This is an incredibly small amount of people putting in the effort to vote for something that will have a lasting impact on Pioneer.
The class president gives a speech at commencement, which people will look back on years later. The class president is also responsible for planning class reunions, so the position really does go beyond the president’s time at Pioneer.
The seniors who show up to their last senior class meeting get to vote for a staff member to speak at their commencement ceremony. They do not, however, get to vote for a member of their own class to speak at their commencement, because that honor is awarded to the student council president from the student council. If seniors voted for the student council president, it would ensure that this speech is given by someone the majority of those who voted chose.
Some claim that students should not choose the senior class president because it would be a popularity contest, rather than the best person for the job, but that is exactly what the vote for staff member graduation speaker is — a “popular” teacher is selected. Just as no individual has met every teacher in Pioneer, no student has met every person in his or her grade. If all this is going to be is a popularity contest, then let the graduating class decide who they want to hear speak at their own graduation.