School Presidential Council convenes to hear student voices

The Student Council underclassmen class conceived of the Presidential Council. Photo courtesy Activities Director Kelsey Stiff.

Posted May 16, 2022

By Huda Aden and Farhiya Mohammed

Staff Reporters

A Presidential Council met on April 27 in the south building boardroom with administration and several students to put plans into place to improve DDHS in various areas.

The Black Student Union, the Indigenous Students Club, LSU, NHS, YACHT, Student Council I and II were all in attendance. Only a few clubs were absent, including All Peers, AYCO, Environmental Action, IRCO, and MSA. The Presidential Council was created for students and administrators to begin discussing how to make the school a better place for students of all ages and ethnicities.

The meeting started with a cabinet discussion, which consisted of the district's strategic and equity plan. A program for high school students who are interested in becoming a teacher called GYO (Grow Your Own) was also discussed. GYO has a partnership with PCC and Warner Pacific. Students accepted into GYO will be provided with tuition support. In order to take advantage of this opportunity, interested students must be interviewed. They must also be a school leader and a student who is aware of the school.

The subjects of racism and discrimination also came up at the meeting. Students present stated that they thought nothing was being done about racism and discrimination towards the students of color at David Douglas High School, such as racist jokes. The point was raised that many students don’t feel that way about certain words and phrases. One student mentioned that students of color are also being targeted for ISS.

“So, as far as racism at our school, I’m glad that it’s beginning to be discussed and acknowledged so we can work towards having a fix,” said Kaleab Bekele.

The point was raised that some ELD students feel uncomfortable when students point out their accents, and that some teachers make ELD students feel uneasy about that as well.

Student Council and others present suggested addressing the issue by focusing on communication and finding ways to “cool down.” They expressed that talking to students knowing they have feelings will somewhat have a positive effect on this.