Mrs. Devlin and Mrs. Al-Amoudi have taken it upon themselves to lead Student Government this year, and the election results are in!
I had the chance to chat with some of the students who were elected into office. They are full of a variety of great ideas, but I noticed one consistent goal coming from each of them: a more involved student community where they can speak and by heard.
“I firmly believe that the one thing that students mainly seek to find in a school is a safe learning environment and a place where they can grow as individuals with their voices heard!” said Michelle M., the President of our High School Student Government. This is the kind of experience she wants to help the students create for one another.
Tanesha S., the Vice President of the High School Student Government, echoed Michelle’s sentiment, also pointing out that they will be improving on a school environment that is already allowing students to speak: “Students are much happier here and they can use their voice to make changes,” she pointed out. “I would like to have the students become more involved in the school.”
Tanesha and Michelle’s goals went hand-in-hand with Mrs. Devlin’s and Mrs. Al-Amoudi’s. They initially described the goal of student council as, “An organization that seeks to create a more positive, student-centered environment for all.” As teachers, they want to create a better school community, provide students with opportunities for leadership, and to encourage the students of PA Distance to be involved in the school community and the community of Pennsylvania.
As for the Middle School Student Council, they too are hoping to unite their community and help students have a voice.
“The thing that has impressed me the most is the heart that they have,” said Mrs. Devlin. “The first thing they wanted to focus on was figuring out a way to help others that are struggling. They also truly want a community and have pride in PA Distance. Many of them are new and expressed that they hadn't had the chance to be a member of student council - until now.”
PA Distance Learning is proud to be able to give all students the opportunity to be part of a different kind of community. We are small in the grand scheme of Cyber Charter schools - that said, we sure are mighty! Our small sized classrooms and relationship-centered approach allow us to give more opportunity in a more personalized way.
We seek to do cyber school differently, so it is an honor to see our students benefit from that and want more voice and involvement in their learning. Michelle summed it up pretty well: