Changes implemented by community council are already underway. This year, the council voted in favor of reshaping certain aspects of student government.
Council not only recommended the removal of the positions of treasurer and vice- president on the grade level, but also decided to remove runoff elections and added the position of class agent.
Regarding the new form of council, incoming Community Council President Damis Yancopoulos said, “I honestly have no idea how this new community council will work out. There are less representatives from each grade, which can either help by allowing us to organize more easily or be a detriment because we will have less people to come up with fantastic ideas.”
Senior Sophia Carpiniello, current school vice president, thinks that the changes are for the best. “The changes will be a good way to have less people on council who are more committed. People who are more dedicated to council will help to represent the school as a whole more accurately,” said Sophia.
On the other hand, by taking away the positions of
vice -president and treasurer at the grade level, there are fewer positions occupied by people who are serious about council.
Senior Xiaoling Keller, current school treasurer, believes that “the fewer spots there are, the harder it is to be elected for council.” She commented that “the large amount of people on council this past year was unnecessary and that those running for council should have the desire to be on council for the job and not for the title.”
Either way, vice-president and treasurer have the same function on council. It does make sense to call both positions grade representatives.
The elimination of runoffs has had a big impact on the elections this year. Rather than needing more than half of the votes to win, the candidate with the most votes wins the election. As a result, elections are no longer based on majority vote but on having the most votes.
While it does make elections less stressful for candidates running, it also means that every vote counts; one vote can make the difference in the election. Xiaoling finds that “not winning by majority fails to make sure that the candidate is receiving most of the grade’s support. However, if they get more votes than their opponents, it does make sense for them to win.”
Xiaoling believes that there should still be runoffs for elections with more than two candidates.
Moreover, the creation of the class agent position allows students, who otherwise may not have run for a position, to have a chance to serve on council. Students are nominated by the dean and community council representatives for their grade level to be class agents. Students then vote for one of the nominated students to serve as the class agent.
Senior Will Walker, current school president, believes that the class agent position “will allow community council to have representatives who might not be comfortable with public speaking, but will still contribute a great deal to council.”
A nearly unanimous student body vote showed that most students are in favor of the new changes. Sophomore Derek Rosenzweig thinks that “the new system will be more productive and will definitely work to benefit the school as a whole.”
Sophomore Aaron Schwartz disagrees with some of the changes. Aaron believes that “council shouldn’t have taken away the positions of vice-president and treasurer but simply assigned them new, unique roles.”
The changes were made not only to benefit council, but also to benefit the students being represented throughout each grade. “All the changes are very positive and they will help the council work more effectively moving forward,” Will said.
