Student Senate Elections Highlight Core Values

Often one of the first acts of leadership requires a good deal of courage—the courage to stand up and articulate one’s beliefs, regardless of what one’s peer might think. (Courage also happens to be one of Cardigan’s Core Values!) During last week’s Cardigan Senate elections, students from every grade courageously took turns at the podium, speaking to their peers about their views on leadership and what they would want to accomplish if they were elected.

“It is great to see the boys get involved in the formal leadership of our school,” says PEAKS Department Chair Jarrod Caprow, who helped facilitate the seventh-grade elections. “Since the population of the student body is heavily weighted towards the older students, it is important that the Student Senate members from the sixth and seventh grade work hard to remind others that their thoughts count too.” 

During the election process students are divided by grade, and the boys who want to be part of the Student Senate are given the opportunity to speak directly to their classmates before the voting begins. This year close to ten students from each class stood up to be counted, sharing thoughtful speeches about what matters to them and what kinds of leaders they hope to be. The boys talked about listening to the needs and requests of their peers, taking responsibility for their actions, and bringing experiences with them from other schools and previous roles. But what was most notable was the number of students who understood that as leaders they would be serving their brothers; they seemed to clearly understand that the roles for which they were raising their hands were not about power or popularity but about giving back and making Cardigan a better place.

See more photos from the Student Senate election

The Student Senate is made up of the school leader, the assistant school leader, the elected senators from each grade level, a faculty advisor, and the dean of student life. The following students were elected to serve on the Student Senate for the 2019-2020 school year:

Sixth Grade 
Zhimin “Jimmy” Li 
Junhyeong “Jun” An 

Seventh Grade 
Estyn Elkouh 
Hudson Heinemann 

Eighth Grade
Zihan “Harrison” Huang 
Zi “Damian” Zhu
Beau Brissette
Gabriel Raphael 

Ninth Grade
Hanzhe “Jason” Jiang 
Kam Wun “Sky” Wong
Ved Bhat
Hyun Joon “Justin” Lee 

It is with courage that these students stood up this week and agreed to participate in the governance of the School, and it is admirable that they chose to make their voices heard. It is the other three core values of Cardigan, however, that will guide the boys as they take on their new roles. Compassion, respect, and integrity will be what will help them make a difference in the Cardigan community and will make them far more than just the holders of fancy titles. We look forward to the new year and all that can be accomplished on The Point.