An Introduction to the Philadelphia Student Union
Gavriela Kalish (10-4)
Masterman is packed with a multitude of clubs, and many students fill their schedules with more clubs than weekdays; several report that their days are double booked. Some clubs and activities encourage athletic or musical achievement, while others are based on academic enrichment or developing a sense of identity. Philadelphia Student Union (PSU) offers students a place to explore interests and bring about changes in their community at school and beyond.
PSU is an organization where students can advocate for change in their communities. They speak out against toxic conditions, budgeting deficits, and policing in schools, among other public school issues.
PSU aims to help students develop their own voices in order to advocate for themselves. “There shouldn't be any reason that Philadelphia students aren't equipped to think critically about the issues [faced by students],” says Kory Murphy, the lead organizer for PSU’s citywide organization. “The students are experiencing [these issues] firsthand. We're experiencing it secondhand as staff that are accountable for young people. It's our job as adults on staff to build [students] up as strongly as possible so that [they] can address these issues. It doesn't mean that we're always going to win; a lot of times young people are not taken seriously for lots of different reasons.”
Philadelphia Student Union was founded in the 1990s as a space for young people to engage in activism. One of the aspects that makes PSU so unique is that it is entirely student-driven.“It wasn't something that was under administration, [but] something outside of that that could still influence how schools work,” says sophomore Rennie Lee (10-1), the student organizer for Masterman’s chapter of PSU. This organization especially appreciates special skills and talents, finding ways to incorporate unique skills into their activism. “I'm an artist,” says Murphy, who was very involved in PSU at his school when he was a student. “This organization allowed me to see the beauty in art in organizing events and creating change.”
Lee first got involved through a protest for police-free schools, and later through budgeting campaigns in front of the school board. Other members include sophomores Anya Rubin (10-4) and Josh Cohen (10-2). On her participation in PSU, Rubin explains“I wanted to get involved with more things at school and this seemed like a good opportunity because I wanted to help out more with the community.” Cohen concurs, adding, “PSU is an opportunity for students to make an impact on the school district and improve conditions [for] their fellow students.”
In meetings, Lee explains that the club’s schedule is flexible and depends on issues members bring up for discussion. Overall, their goal is to pinpoint problems in the school that students will then work to fix: “So far we’ve talked about how we want to see change in the school, what we want to add, overall with no limitation. A big thing that we talked about was support in the school that did not have to do with furthering your academic record. We talked about how some adults don’t focus on your wellbeing as much as they focus on your [statistics] for the school -- all As, SAT score. That is something I would like to see changed, where we have more emotional and mental support with less focus on statistics to better the school's name.”
Masterman’s chapter of PSU recently created a survey that has been sent out to grade Google Classroom pages. This survey includes questions about students’ experiences at Masterman, and what aspects they would like to see changed or improved. Students should fill out this survey at their earliest convenience in order to contribute to improvements that they would like to see at Masterman and in the school district.
Students interested in joining PSU should join the Google Classroom page using the code b5o22w3.