I have been working hard for you.

Since I took this position in September of 2007, I have been asking questions and demanding solutions on the most pressing issues facing students. Here are a few things I was able to improve:

1. Respect for the Student Voice: No student representative before me has shown up, been listened to, and made an impact. I have. Details: Many of the members of the School Committee have remarked to me that it is refreshing to hear the student voice well-represented. I try as hard as I can to work on this area, sitting through meetings and making sure every issue affecting students at Newton North High School is well-represented and that the student voice is always heard.

2. The Budget: I was able to help restore 1 million dollars worth of cuts to the 2009-10 budget. Details: The 2010 budget in its first form would have imposed a 26-block cap on classes students could take and would have set 16 or 20-person minimums for most elective classes, depending on curriculum level. These changes would have limited academic achievement and would have affected disproportionate amounts of people in relationship to amount of money saved. I helped defeat them, with an initiative called High School Students for a Better Budget. Currently, I am working on using $1,000,000 that the Mayor will return to the schools next January to fill in most if not all of this year's cuts, and the budget, hopefully including that money, will be voted on in three weeks. 

3. Protecting Open Campus: I was able to help preserve Open Campus and strongly believe in sophomore open campus and in open campus being a right, not a privilege, for juniors and seniors. Details:
I served on the School Security Subcommittee of the School Committee. During some discussion, open campus came under attack. I strongly and successfully advocated for its preservation, arguing that ending it would cause minimal positive effects but a massive loss in student morale.

4. Security: As the first ever student writing city-wide policy, I helped craft a sensible security policy that does not impinge on student rights but protects students and faculty from threats and theft. Details: After the embarrassing debacle at Newton South High School, in which an administration by its actions lost the respect and trust of the student body, it became clear to me and to the School Committee that clear policy was needed in this area. A subcommittee was formed on this issue, including me. I was the first student ever to help write school system policy. A plan in agreement with most if not all of my ideas on this topic was passed by the School Committee in November 2008. Security cameras are allowed in buildings, but only temporarily and with community, including student, notification.

5. Food Service: I have taken food service to task about the lack of vegetarian options, the line length, and the low quality of some of the food. Details:
Food service has been lackluster at all of the schools. I have been vocal in my criticism of the innefficient and time-consuming way that food service currently works. The increase in food quality is an indicator of the success of those efforts, but I'm not stopping now. In the Issues section you'll find out more about this.