233- A STUDENT ON THE LOCAL SCHOOL BOARD?......

Non-voting member, of course....
But this plan has been brewing for some some time, all the way back to 1993/1994. It is a BOLD consideration, locally, and will be sketched out with more details soon. A thick file was accumulated back in the early '90s. This idea has stuck around with me for some time. It's time to proceed with an introduction. The plan includes a "constitution" and how to choose that student rep to sit with and become a liaison between the older, wiser School Board members and an actual public school student. During the meetings, the Board could, in public, ask the student rep concerns and questions and LISTEN!...a go-between the generation gap now presently existing.
Yes, the concept is bold and doable!

Fairfax County Public Schools, since 1972, does have a Student Advisory Council with Bylaws. Their Preamble sets up three Articles in detail: the Fairfax County Student Advisory Council (SAC) of the Fairfax County Public Schools. Each high school in the system shall elect a maximum of five (5) members and a first and a second alternate. Members serve a one-year term and prior to May 1st of the coming school year, with the final meeting in May of that spring. A chariperson is elected within each high school delegation.
The students "run" the membership. And, the county SAC has the elected chairperson joining together to form a countywide SAC.
I have a copy of the constitution, and copies are also available in Fairfax County. Their constitution spells out exactly how the SAC operates and is a tried and true operation over time.
Student reps are non-voting members of the Fairfax County SAC, but they may speak at any meeting. They represent the students as a liason with the School Board and provide an excellent
opprtunity for all students to be heard. The SAC Constitution goes into detail as to how this is accomplished.
A small group of seniors in a 1994 government class actually created a resolution and constitution! "...the need for a student voice on the School Board...We the senior class feel that open communication is vital between the School Board and us, directly affecting the students. The objective of a student on the School Board is to establish a better rapport between educators, parents, School Board and students, and a stronger educational climate for learning."

Since any bold idea takes more than a small few originators to jump in to support and help forulate, 1994's innovative idea and plan to create a student SAC to sit with and advise the local School Board vanished....what a shame!