ONLINE EDITOR TYLER ZSCHACH sits down with Student Council President Issy Kelly (’14) and Vice President Adam Koren (’14) to discuss their upcoming tenures.
ISSY KELLY (’14)
What are you planning to build on from last term from Julian Nebreda’s (’13) presidency?
Julian set a very high standard so there really is a lot to live up to. He did a great job of connecting different student leaders in the school with the admin. My main priority is to work on relationships between the students and our school and different community members.
As President, do you have any intentions of changing the way the elections for the officer positions in StuCo are done?
We felt that it was best to nominate within the council because we know the work each individual has done throughout the year, but I think it would be okay to have students hear the speeches. I feel if in the future we had some sort of way [to] listen in on the meetings as all of our meetings are open. It wouldn’t have violated rules if students had come [to the elections], but maybe publicizing it a little more that every meeting is open.
How would you answer students who complain that Student Council lacks a fresh perspective and a fresh opportunity for change at election time because the candidates have been participating in Student Council for the past several years?
I would argue that each President has their own personal style, so I feel that the council does evolve a little bit with each new presidency, and that there is definitely going to be room for change. Also, change occurs when students nominate their grade reps.
ADAM KOREN (’14)
As Vice President, do you feel that you should look to reform the election voting process?
I definitely believe that the election voting process has flaws and I do believe that it needs some sort of reform, but I stand by my belief that it should not be opened up to the whole student body. I believe that the election voting process should be changed into a way where it represents more of what the student body wants.
What are some major reforms you are targeting for your vice presidency?
I want to change the Student Council constitution. The constitution hasn’t been updated in a long time and it needs some major reforms. In addition, something that I have been working on before the election, and still am working on, is improving the relationship between the librarians and students along with some other Student Council representatives. But my biggest goal is to better the communication between the student body and Student Council.
How will the dynamic between you and Issy differ and compare to the relationship between Tark Masri (’13) and Nebreda? Will you be taking a more assertive role in the activities of the Student Council?
I think that Issy and I have a really strong dynamic mainly because of how different we are. The past two Vice-Presidents did not have a very strong role in the Student Council, so I am determined to change the role of the Vice-President during my tenure into having a more important role.
tyler_zschach@asl.org
