Student Council is making an effort to deliver on one of the campaign promises made by Faiyad Ahmad ’10 last spring: the guarantee of more School Congress meetings. We commend the effort Student Council is making in this area, but there were some problems with Monday’s School Congress that need to be addressed. The facilitators chosen were the senior representatives rather than the most skilled student speakers who would be comfortable controlling and moving the discussion in the direction they deemed necessary. The strength of some meetings were curtailed by the moderator’s lack of public speaking experience. The problems were also too open-ended. We under that the questions were intended to provide an opportunity for candid discussion, but they ultimately made it difficult for the discussions to begin, as several rooms struggled with semantics. Other problems included students coming in with specific agendas. Irate students, armed with misinformation, used the Congress as a means of complaining to the adults about issues such as the Pep Rally. If Ahmad could better specify the purpose of each School Congress meeting, there would be fewer unconstructive attacks. As students, we have the power to implement positive change, and we can do so at School Congress. These gatherings have significant potential. In pursuit of a stronger community with closer bonds between faculty and students, we offer this advice: more preparation, better questions, better facilitators and more invitations issued to student leaders. Student Council is taking a step in the right direction, they just need to put in a little more effort. These editorials represent the views of the Phillipian Editorial Board CXXXII.
