Last week’s elections for student body president and Forum, marred by questions of insufficient notice and publicity, have raised interest in the process of nominating and becoming a candidate.
The student body president and Forum representatives play an important role in communicating with the administration and parents on behalf of the student body and elections typically generate substantial candidate interest. The three candidates that receive the most votes by their respective grades become the Forum representatives for their class. A school-wide election for the student body president is held to determine who among rising seniors will lead Forum.
This year’s elections provided the class of 2023 with an opportunity for not only three Forum representatives, including the senior class president, but also the student body president. However, the opportunity to run for these positions was not publicized except at the student Service and Leadership Fair held in March. The lack of wide-spread public notice resulted in some students missing a chance to run for office.
“We didn’t have posters, school-wide emails, or social media posts about the election,” faculty advisor to Forum, Ben Cady, explained.
Students who signed up for student government opportunities at the Fair, however, were informed about the process to run for Forum. “I signed up for Forum at the club Fair. Once I got the follow-up email from Mr. Cady, it became something that I really wanted to do,” noted Alex Witzke ‘23, who ran for student body president and Forum for the first time this year. In the end, there was a large turnout of candidates and interest in the election.
The topics of Forum transparency and communication were addressed by candidates in their speeches, and many students have expressed an interest in receiving more information about the election process and Forum’s mission. The student government encourages students to attend meetings every Friday during second lunch in the small dining room, yet it is rare that students attend. Current Forum member Ben Hykes ‘23 explained, “I didn’t really understand what Forum exactly was before I ran last year.” “When I joined, the achievements I had heard of prior [were] the improvement of cup sizes and the chocolate milk they introduced as a regular drink.”
