Interview with new school prez

Juniors Katie Wendler and Elizabeth Strouse were recently elected President and Vice President of the Jemicy School. Wendler takes over for Kai Gardner who held the position of school-wide president for two years. The Frisbee had the chance to ask Wendler a few questions about her position:

Why did you want to be the school president?

I wanted to be the school president because I feel as though I thrive in a position of leadership. I want to be able to create a fun and safe environment within the school even with the restrictions we have put in place. I believe that Elizabeth [Strouse] and I will be able to reach that goal with the help of the rest of the student government and the support from the rest of the student body. 

What preparations did you make before the election?

Elizabeth and I have been thinking about running since the middle of last year. I wrote the beginning of our speech in the first month of the year and have been advocating for the election since the beginning of the year. We made posters together and edited and revised our speech together making sure our message came across that we really wanted this and we were ready to adapt our campaign around the virus. 

What are the first steps you are going to take to make Jemicy the best it can be?

Some of the first steps we are taking to start this process are that we are starting up SGA meetings again and figuring out what the students want the most. Our first meeting was, in my mind, very successful. We sent out a survey asking people what they wanted out of their school year and we plan to organize the ideas into what the people wanted, the most to least. Once we figure out our top priority, we will plan our route of action. 

What plans do you have for the school year? 

I do not want to make promises on the basis of false hope but I have goals that I truly hope to achieve during this school year. Some of them are as follows: Coopers Cart, organized lunch areas, to safely integrate Chick-fil-a Thursdays, and the revival of the senior’s privileges among many many others. 

Have students come to you with ideas? If so, what are some of the ideas students have come up with?

A couple of people have come up to me with ideas including my opponents after the election. Fuller and Ethan are the creators of the Cooper’s Cart idea that I think was wonderful. Other people have come up to me and shared with me their hopes for more resources in the women’s restroom, sports, the option to wear sweatpants, and to implement the “food days” that we had last year.  

How is this job harder with all the COVID-19 restrictions? For example, what if we end up going virtual?

Some would say that my job is now harder because of COVID and in some aspects that is true, but I believe that with COVID-19, my job has been able to provide opportunity and voice to the student body in a way that previous years have not. Sadly with more problems comes more things to fix and adapt to. The position is not easy but with ambition and goals we will be able to create fluid change. If the school goes virtual, I will make sure that the student’s voices are still heard as much as they would be if we were in person. 

A little message I have if you want: 

Elizabeth and I are honored to have been elected as your Student body representatives. We promise to make the best school year that we can under the circumstances. That includes not only us working for what the students want, but the students working with us to advocate for themselves. It is a group process.