Elizabeth W. MSJ '24
The Mount Saint Joseph student government elections for the school year 2021-22 have occurred. Student government plays an important role during the school year helping out with all kinds of events, so the election is important. The elections normally happen once a year to decide who will be in student government for that year.
The elections happened on the 20th of May, 2021. This is a departure from the previous years, because it happened at the close of the year. Due to this change there were two elections in the 2020-21 school year. The reason for this change is to allow the student government to start planning events as soon as the fall semester begins. This will affect all classes, except for the new incoming freshman class, who will vote for their class representative in the fall of 2021. Although this is a different process from previous years, the requirements remain the same.
Any student that wished to be a candidate, and met the requirements for the position, could sign up, but all students got to vote. The overall requirements for all the positions are good standing with the staff, no infractions, a minimum GPA of 3.0, and no academic probation within the past two semesters. On election day all the candidates introduced themselves to the student body, then the people running for president gave their speeches. After the speeches all the students were given a ballot to select who they wanted to elect for each position. Then at the end of the next day, after all the ballots were turned in and counted, the winners of each of the positions were shared with the student body over the dismissal announcements. The first planning meeting for next year's student government took place Tuesday, May 11th.
The elections are important because it allows for students to get their first experience of the democratic process. The student government helps to plan and run school events, like spirit weeks, half day activities, Project Help, and more. During the current school year the student government met up at least once a week, during their lunch, to plan events. When a big event is upcoming, there will be multiple meetings a week. This helps to prepare for the event as much as possible. One of the biggest, if not the biggest, event the student government helps plan is Project Help.
Deciding who represents the student body can change what the year is going to be like. The students are able to decide what events are prioritized. The election is an exciting time for change in MSJ student government.
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