November 16th, 2020
What were my perceptions going into Student Government?
I’ve played a role in student government through most of high school and some of middle school, but that role has taken on very different meanings each year. During one of the years where I was in student government in middle school, we only had one meeting. It was not an extra responsibility, literally, nothing happened. In 9th grade, meetings were more frequent, but it still wasn’t much. It began to change in 11th grade when Sam took over student government. To be honest, I didn’t plan on joining student government. I just naturally tend towards leadership opportunities and found myself in the Sociales room in a meeting for those interested in student government. The general perception of student government at La Paz is a group of students who meet and never do anything. I thought the same, I had experienced firsthand. However, my perception was slightly different as I saw it as an opportunity for change. I entered that meeting in 11th grade hoping to be a part of that change and ran again in 12th intending to push it even further.
Did I surprise myself, inspire myself, or disappoint myself and how did that feel?
Through this process, I have felt all of those emotions. I’ve been surprised at my willingness to put effort into this project and been surprised at the relationships I’ve been able to create through it. I’ve been inspired by the possibilities of making a change but also been disappointed in times where I didn’t do enough to change anything. It’s been a rollercoaster, every year starts with a new sense of possibility but then the reality of La Paz’s high school culture hits, and it becomes a struggle. But even writing that sentence I feel disappointed in myself and know I have to keep trying to make student government something worthwhile.
What was the value of the activity for myself, my family, my community, and/or my world?
The value of student government is a tricky one. For me, it has a high value. It helped bolster my college application and it has taught me how to lead, delegate, organize, empower, and listen. The value for my community is what I’m trying to increase. In the past it hasn’t held much value, no one really depends on student government, except for the occasional dress down days, and it doesn’t always add value to the high school culture. I’m trying to change that. I want to add positivity and fun into the high school culture which is often overwhelmed by stress and negativity. This has proven to be easier said than down.
Who helped me develop these skills? How did they help?
As I mentioned before through this project I’ve developed leadership skills, delegation skills, organizational skills, empowerment skills, and listening skills. I’ve been able to develop these skills by watching other leaders in student government. The different presidents I’ve “served” under, like Sam and Bernabe, have helped me understand how to be a leader and how not to be a leader. By watching them maneuver leadership I learned from their mistakes and success. Additionally, by being elected by the student body to be president I’ve learned how to lead them and how to lead my student government team, through trial and error of course. My delegation skills were similarly developed by watching other leaders delegate, by watching Miss Kerry’s delegation, and through feedback from my team members. Organization skills have just been developed inherently throughout the last years, I’ve latched on a lot to Miss Kerry’s organization skills and learned from her ways. Lastly, empowerment and listening I’ve learned from being a part of a group working to create something. I’ve learned the power of listening and importance and how empowerment can be achieved through that.
Thank you for reading,
Grace
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