Campus concerns addressed by student Presidential Council

  Student Council participated in an Equity Centered Design Challenge. 

“Our goal was to come up with a way to elevate student voices on our camps, and after a few months of brainstorming and planning, the Presidential Council was born,” said Activities Director Kelsey Stiff

After the underclassmen from the Student Council came up with the idea, it was brought up with The Cabinet members at the District Office. The idea of a Presidential Council was welcomed by the administrators.

 "[They] were thrilled to be able to have a group of well-rounded students get input when making decisions that impact our DDSD community,” said Stiff.

Several of the District Office Cabinet members are present during the meetings, including staff members from the Bond Oversight Committee. Other school administrators are also present including principal Greg Carradine and Assistant Principals Joe Talley and Jennifer Busher. A lot of thought is put into each Presidential Council meeting as they only happen quarterly, on a Wednesday at 7:30 a.m., and the admins are always on a strict schedule. To ensure the agenda will be timely, there’s a timekeeper present as well as debriefing time. Along with being time efficient, the Presidential Council aims to be solution-oriented and focuses on representation and inclusion to improve school culture.

To ensure student voices are heard, the Student Council sends out biannual surveys. The most recent survey, DDHS Climate and Culture Student Survey, was sent out in February. 

“We want to represent you to the best of our abilities, so please take some time and share your thoughts with us,” stated the survey email. Unfortunately, less than 5% of the student body responded. Students are encouraged to fill out these surveys as they are how the Student Council identifies the common themes of students' concerns and highlights them as discussion topics for next Presidential Council meetings.

The first two Presidential Council meetings for this school year happened on Nov. 28, 2022 and the second was held on Jan. 25. Both meetings discussed restrooms (specifially vaping and vandalism), sexual assault (specifially harassment policies and education), and campus safety. These meetings involved the students sitting at one side of the room taking turns to speak into their microphones, while the administrators were on the other end as listeners. 

The third Presidential Council meeting was held on March 8. It was determined based on the first two meetings that some meeting procedures could be done differently, so the third meeting was workshop style. Students were separated into groups of 3-4 and each group of students had 1-2 administrators sitting at their tables. Prompts were projected on the screen and each group of students and administrators had productive discussions and came up with solutions to write on their posters, which were presented at the end. There will be a fourth and last meeting for this school year, but the date is yet to be determined.

Stiff and the Student Council have small debrief sessions with Carradine and Busher after each meeting to try and make improvements. 

“We are constantly making changes,"  said Stiff. "Every meeting we've done a few things different to try to make the process better. The council will continue to morph and change based on the needs of the students, but we will always keep student voice as our #1 priority.” 

The Presidential Council provided space for students to connect with admins, voice their concerns, represent the student body, and try to facilitate change. It has also acted as a powerful leadership opportunity for all the students who participated.

“This leadership role empowered me for the rest of my life," said ASB 3rd Vice President Duy Nguyen. "I know I am capable of change, of speaking to those seemingly at 'higher' positions, of voicing out what I feel is right and sticking to it, of knowing that something can't ever be done alone. We can literally change the world if we just believe and seek out.”