Helping students develop a student government at school has been a goal for several years. This year, several teachers set this in motion. Teachers formed an election committee and explained to each classroom that they would have a school-wide lesson in the democratic election process. The students proposed a candidate and then voted for a student president for the school year.
First candidates would volunteer or be recommended from each classroom. The students were given a few qualification rules for each candidate.
The student’s qualifications included:
- Strong grades
- Good behavior
- Helpful to teachers
- A desire to practice leadership and service to other students.
- Someone else that other students look up to
There were 15 students who were nominated. The election committee then chose five candidates who successfully met all the qualifications and ran their campaigns last week. Each student chose a platform promise that they presented to their classmates. One student shared that she would help students learn how to keep the classrooms and school grounds clean, instilling student pride in their school. Another platform was student behavior—helping students be responsible and help each other monitor their behavior toward others with kindness and care.
So, here’s how the program went:
- First, students ran their campaigns, sharing what they would do if elected president.
- The second was a debate where students asked questions of the candidates.
- Finally, Friday was election day, an opportunity for students to vote for who they believe is the best candidate.
Students used a ballot with the names of the 5 candidates. The election committee built in protective guidelines to prevent students from voting multiple times, and only one vote was allowed per ballot. Each student was given a number, and that number was checked off after they voted. The president will next choose a speaker and a communication director, who will all serve for one school year. Watch a video of the students voting, here.
The five candidates were:
- Victoria Bourdeau, 6th grade, Winner
- Wesley Neozil, 5th grade
- Dorly Fils-Aime, 5th grade
- Sam (Tchery) Nogaus, 5th grade
- Bidjina Ferdinand, 5th grade, Runner Up
The 8th graders decided not to run for office but instead will function as counselors to the newly elected president and team. They will help him or her with difficult decisions, offering creative ideas for implementation.
The six teachers that were involved on the election committee:
- Estagonia Senatus Moise
- Mardoly Millien
- Edrice Bastien
- Marc Adriel Gracia
- Emmanuel Joseph Dauphin
- Carlo Nau
Read how our student government elections were covered by the news in Caberet, here!