George Wangensteen

Senior Class Presidential Candidate

Why would you be a good candidate for this position?

I have both the passion and experience necessary to insure that we have a great Senior year.  I’ve served on council for the past three years, and I like to think that we’ve been, by and large, very productive.  We’ve created new, fun, events, both grade and school-wide, like Manhunt and the Snowball.  We’ve smashed pies into Mr. McLay’s face.  We’ve seen amazing spirit at sports games.  We’ve even helped bring spring dress code to the first two weeks of September.  I know what it takes to get stuff done on council, both in terms of event-creating and advocating for the students.  More importantly, I also care a lot about Hackley.  I really want our last year here to be as great as it can be.  I think that any student or teacher will tell you that I’m deeply interested in Hackley and in helping to make it incredible.  This is a place that I love; I have the motivation to help make it great.

In addition, I also have a few specific goals for the coming year.  I think this is really important, because it allows you guys to get a good grasp on what I’ll actually do with my time on council.  See the ‘goals’ section for more details.  In short, I think that my dedication to making Hackley better, my experience on council, and my specific, goal-oriented approach make me a good candidate.

What have you done for the Hackley Community?

I consistently get as involved as I can in everything I’m interested in in the Hackley community.  I’ve been on student council for three years, and, as I noted above, have helped it achieve great goals.  I help come up with ideas like manhunt and snowball, and I help plan the events, too.  I advocate for students when I can: along with Ally, I spoke with both the Deans and Mr. King last year in favor of introducing a modified spring dress code for the first two weeks of school.  While no promises were made, we did indeed have spring dress code during September this year.

Outside of council, I have played three years of varsity soccer, and will play again next year.  I understand the importance of sports in the Hackley community because my experience with soccer here is something that has impacted me greatly.  I also am heavily involved in debate, serving as club president and attending numerous tournaments.  I also volunteer often through debate, helping at middle school debate team functions and tournaments, volunteering to judge, helping at workshops for schools in the city, and helping the team grow here at Hackley.  There are a ton of things I’m interested in here at Hackley, and I try and give back to all of the things about the school that have given so much to me.  I’ve done so with council and debate among other things in the past, and would like to continue to do so next year.

What are your goals if elected?

I have one really, really important goal for next year: increasing both student and faculty involvement in the major decision-making here at Hackley.  Planning events and increasing school spirit are important functions of community council, and I’ll always be involved with them.  But community council also has another role: that of a student advocate.  Students and non-administrative-faculty have very little say in many major decision making processes here at Hackley: neither group has any official representation on Academic or Executive Committee; neither can count on playing a significant and official role in disciplinary decisions, or decisions about spending or curriculum.  In a school so focused on forming an inclusive, tight-knit community, this is a real problem.  There needs to be a way for both students and faculty, the two largest “constituencies” on campus, to contribute extensively to major decisions.  They need an official outlet to express concerns, and a way to make sure those concerns are heard.

If I’m elected to community council, I will work hard to insure that the students feel as though they have meaningful representation.  I have spoken extensively with students and faculty alike, and I truly believe that with our combined effort, increasing the input of students and faculty at Hackley is an achievable goal.  This is something I care deeply about, because I believe in both Hackley and in it having a strong, egalitarian community.  If elected, I will work to advocate for students.

Spyridon Coffinas

Senior Class Representative Candidate

Why would you be a good candidate for this position?

I’d be a great candidate for this position. I am one of the most spirited members of the class, and have been to many of the sporting events at the school throughout the fall and winter. I was part of the section that got yelled at by Mr. Edwards for being too spirited at the Winter Sting, I have the capability to manage and get people together, as in Hackley FC, and most importantly, I believe that I am an outgoing person that people can talk to and not be afraid to voice their opinions to.

What have you done for the Hackley Community?

I have built Hackley FC, which is a club soccer team for those who aren’t skilled enough or aren’t ready for the responsibilities and expectations of a varsity team. I have also shown up to every ‘Sting’ event in full body paint, leading the crowd in cheering and overall enthusiasm. I also started the Hellenic Heritage Club to help educate interested learners in a culture that is not often learned about it the curriculum.

What are your goals if elected?

My goals, if elected, are to help create awesome events that can be held at school to not only get people excited and spirited for teams, but to also bring together not only grades, but the entire school. In addition, I’d like to really carry out the duty of letting people know what goes on in council, which is under the responsibilities but often times is not carried out. In general, I’d like to help raise school spirited and get people going to as many games and events as possible.

Josh Greenzeig

Senior Class Representative Candidate

Why would you be a good candidate for this position?

I believe I am a good candidate for the position of Grade Representative for a couple of reasons. Firstly, I am an experienced leader in both official and unofficial capacities. As a Grade Representative at my old school, I worked together with my peers and the surrounding community to create successful events that accomplished everything from funding school events to raising money for great causes, such Relay for Life. Building off this experience once I arrived to Hackley, I took leadership roles inside the Hackley Community as a leader of the Coffee Houses and other music related projects that require huge time commitments. Secondly, I feel that I can best represent our class because I get along with people of all interests and backgrounds. Furthermore, I am an approachable person who is always willing to listen to anyone. Thirdly, anyone who knows me knows that I am serious and focused enough to get an important task accomplished, but passionate and fun-loving enough to ensure that everyone has a good time. Lastly, I have a deep appreciation for everything that Hackley has done for me across all aspects of my life. In my final year as a student at Hackley, I seek not only to ensure that we, as a community, have an amazing year, but also that the classes following in our footsteps have an equal opportunity to give back to the place that has given us all so much. There is so much we have done as a grade to make our time at Hackley eventful, fun, and memorable. Yet, there is still so much we can, and must, do to leave our own unique and definitive mark on the Hackley hilltop. The Class of 2016 has the truly unique opportunity to leave Hackley in a better place than we all found it. I feel that with my mix of creativity, experience, and passion, I can help all of us best achieve this goal.

What have you done for the Hackley Community?

I am likely most well known for my role as a student leader of the Coffee Houses. This requires spending large amounts of time rehearsing acts, setting up the PAC, organizing performances, and working with both my peers and teachers to ensure the best experience for all who attend. Also, I use my free periods and time outside of school to give music lessons, and mentor students in the Middle School Band. I am also an active political advocate on campus. Lastly, I have been active in community service projects since our freshman year both as a leader and as a volunteer.

What are your goals if elected?

If elected, I plan to increase Community Council’s power by working together with the school-wide leaders to continue to increase Council’s fundraising and spending capabilities, to make the actions of Council more transparent to all students by better publicizing events, and to increase school spirit by creating new events that students will want to attend while amending the existing events to make them even better. We collectively have such an amazing opportunity to make Hackley an even more amazing place. With your support, I know we can achieve everything that we set our sights on.

J.C. Peruzzi

Senior Class Representative Candidate

Why would you be a good candidate for this position?

I work really hard in everything that I do. Be it school, sports, community service, piano, or just random stuff like making videos and photoshops I always try hard to make it the best it can be. If elected, I will provide that same attitude and hard work to all the projects, events, and planning I work on when on council. I will try to make everything as fun and as perfect as it can be, because that’s just the type of person I am.

I would also be a good candidate because I like to push boundaries. I find that fun, spirit, and good times are best generated not when following a cliché script but instead when you try to push the limits and do something that has never been done before. I can be pretty conservative sometimes (I do my homework and study for my tests) but I can also be as crazy as anyone and I want to make sure we have as much opportunity as we possibly can to make our senior year a memorable one. The last thing we want is a standard and boring senior year and I think I have the creativity and work ethic the it takes to make it interesting.

What have you done for the Hackley Community?

I play on sports teams, attend as many events as time allows, participate actively in community service, and try my hardest to make everyone laugh and enjoy their lives at Hackley as much as possible. I’ve participated in making many of the videos that you all enjoy and plan to make many more if I am on council.

What are your goals if elected?

My goal is to make our year as memorable as possible by throwing the craziest, out of the box, and interesting events Hackley School has ever seen. On top of all of that, I want to generate support for all the events that do not get quite as much press, such as the day of silence or the charity work many kids do. These goals can definitely accomplished, and if we do then I think we can have a fantastic year.

Mackenzie Price

Senior Class Representative Candidate

Why would you be a good candidate for this position?

I always carry a positive and light energy wherever I go throughout Hackley School. I am very fast to flash a smile and say hello to anyone in the halls, which my classmates are well aware of. This makes me easy to approach and talk to about ideas for council, issues in the school that need to be brought up by council, or any other sort of comment or feeling. A Class Representative is supposed to provide a solid link between the class body and the council, which I feel I could easily create due to my approachability and friendly, yet not intimidating, nature.

Additionally, I always give everything I do my all, and Class Representative would be no exception. I love the thought of staying late and creating cool events that my classmates get to enjoy or of creating goofy Powerpoints during the end of the year assembly. I am always up for some serious planning, especially when it’s in the name of fun and for the amusement of everyone in my grade. I would make a committed and creative member of council who can always communicate outside ideas from the class if I were installed as Class Representative.

What have you done for the Hackley Community?

In 9th grade I participated in the Sandy Drive twice, I am a part of the Abbott House Club that meets monthly, I have been elected as the President of the Soup Kitchen club along with Roya, I have participated in every coffee house after 9th grade with a special rock flair to spice up the show, and most importantly, I created the deadly Polar Bears. I am also in the debate club and the writing club (although that only met twice before fading). I am proud to call myself a Peer Advisor who has successfully gotten her freshman to say hello to her in the hallways, and I befriend the lowerclassmen on both sports I am involved in (fencing, where I helped Risa with her captainship and now have been voted captain with Alexis Arnold next year and softball).

What are your goals if elected?

My goals would be to get the class more involved in council and vice versa. As a Class Representative, it would be my job to properly integrate class opinion into the decisions of council. This could involve a suggestion jar near the science hallway or perhaps more online surveys in the class Facebook page. If the council brainstorms ideas for events such as laser tag, capture the flag, or a movie night, I think it would be a great idea to have the class vote on which they would prefer of their options. As Class Representative I could take polls or take ideas from other students. This way the events council plans will be attended by more kids because the kids themselves will be involved somehow in the planning of the event. In my opinion, a more interactive class makes a happier, more active class; that would be my goal as Class Representative.

TJ Gooley

Senior Class Representative Candidate

Why would you be a good candidate for this position?

I want to help make senior year the best year at Hackley for the Class of 2016 and all the other classes at Hackley. I enjoy projects and building things, painting, drawing, and just being overall creative. While building the moose for my promposal, I realized how much I enjoyed being creative and doing things to make my peers and even my teachers happy. I am very dedicated and when I want to do something and I promise I’ll do it, I will deliver on it. I bring energy and passion to everything I do, it is something I think is imperative for Council.

What have you done for the Hackley Community?

I try to go to many sports games, and help create a fun and energetic atmosphere around Hackley. However, I haven’t done much aside from founding and leading a club. I want to do more for the community.

What are your goals if elected?

Help make next year amazing, help Council earn more money allowing for more events and more fun. We can make hive shirts, hive sweatshirts, and more clothing. One thing I really want to do is get more people to games and have more people excited and create a fantastic atmosphere for our athletes and fans.

Brian Schmitt

Senior Class Representative Candidate

Why would you be a good candidate for this position?

What have you done for the Hackley Community?

What are your goals if elected?