Campaigning for Class Leader

Congratulations, you are in the running to become the next class leader in your period! You probably want to know what the powers of a class leader will be, and the responsibilities. Then, you can use that information to create a platform (your own position on what a class leader should do), which is what you should communicate to your fellow students so that they will elect you.

Powers of a Class Leader

…this list will probably keep growing in the future, and is subject to occasional change as the system is refined…

1) Change seats in the seating chart

Class leaders may submit requests for seating chart changes, to put a certain student into a certain seat or swap two students’ seats with each other. Class leaders may not seat anyone further back in the class than is necessary based on class size, and the requests are subject to teacher approval (only in rare cases will they be denied). Each change request will cost a certain amount of classroom currency, which may fluctuate depending on how much money is in circulation in that period.

2) Move quiz dates

Class leaders may move back the dates of quizzes, as long as there is sufficient notice to the teacher beforehand. Each day a quiz is moved back costs classroom currency. Moving a quiz back more than one day can be done, but gets very expensive very quickly. Quizzes may not be moved to the day of a unit test (or after the test).

3) Abolish a quiz

Once per semester, a class leader may abolish a quiz. This action only affects the leader’s period, and once used by one leader may never be used again for the rest of the semester, even by future leaders. This action is extremely expensive. It can be done either before, or after a quiz up until the end of the relevant six weeks. Abolishing a quiz doesn’t just get rid of bad grades on the quiz, it gets rid of all grades on the quiz.

4) Decorate the classroom

Class leaders may put up posters and other decorations on the classroom walls, subject to Mr. Smith’s approval. Keep in mind that each item put up by a leader will cost money. Decoration must be done outside of class time (before/after school, at lunch).

5) Create late passes

Ordinarily, students working in businesses will create late assignment passes. But the leader may also create them, at a significantly greater cost. The leader may choose who receives the created late pass, which is then non-transferable and non-saleable.

6) Change another period’s avatars

Sometimes, messing with another period is necessary and this is one way to do it. The leader may submit a picture to replace all the avatars of students in another period.

7) Peek into another period’s finances

This power allows the leader to examine a lot of information about what is going on with another period, both privately (what companies are doing) and publicly (what the government is doing). It may only be used a limited number of times each semester, though.

8) Distribute money to students

This power takes the government’s money and spreads it, evenly, to the students in the leader’s period.

9) Steal from another period’s government

Class leaders may, at significant expense, steal government money from another period.

10) Double test corrections

This power will double the benefit of corrections for any student receiving it, on any multiple-choice assignment.

11) Defend the period

A class leader can purchase defenses for the period, which will turn back an attempt to steal money on the attacker.

How to get money for leader powers

As you noticed above, all the leader powers take classroom currency to activate. This money must come from a special account that the leader has access to, which may only be used for leader powers. Thus, students in the class may not simply give the leader account money – mostly it must be raised through taxes.

Taxes

Governments get their money from those they govern. You need to think about what kind of money your government will take from the people, because as the class leader you will get to decide on tax rates to fund the leader account. Each kind of tax represents a statement about which people and activities should contribute to the government, and about what activities are good and bad. Here are the different kinds of taxes available to you at this time (more may be added later). Tax rates may only be changed once per week. Wondering how to campaign on all this? Aside from the wealth tax people probably won’t pay much attention to the specific numbers, but will pay attention to changes. Tax rates will be even more relevant once the next round of elections happens, because tax rates will have already been set for awhile and people will develop reactions to them.

Lottery tax

A percentage of all ticket sales goes to the leader account.

Income tax, from government

A percentage of all income earned directly from the teacher (defining vocabulary, submitting ideas, classroom rewards etc.) goes to the leader account.

Income tax, from employers

A percentage of all wages paid to employees of firms goes to the leader account.

Wealth tax

Once a week, a percentage of all money in cash on hand and demand deposit accounts (as well as liquid reserves of sole proprietorship companies) of students in the classroom goes to the leader account.

Gift tax

A percentage of all money paid from one student to another goes to the leader account.

Sales tax

A percentage is added to the cost of all firm goods, which goes to the leader account.

Firm startup fee

All money charged to new firm owners in the form of the startup fee goes to the leader account.

Profit tax

A percentage of all profits to firm owners goes to the leader account.

Interest tax

A percentage of all income earned by banks from bond interest and loan interest goes to the leader account.

Import tax

A percentage of all money in the leader’s period used to buy something from another period goes to the leader account.

Emergency wealth tax

Class leaders may institute, whenever they feel like it, an emergency wealth tax on the classroom. This will squeeze 10% of all wealth in the classroom away from the students. However, half of that wealth is lost as overhead – this tax is very, very inefficient.

Bonds

Leaders may sell bonds to banks, to raise money quickly. A bond is a loan, and must be repaid with interest.