SBHS students attend education advisory conference
Kendall Archer, 16, and Katie Thorpe, 17, of San Benito High
School participated in the Student Advisory Board of Education
conference Nov. 14-18 in Sacramento. The students were two of 60
students invited from the state.
SABE is a statewide conference to provide student input on
issues of concern to the education system directly to the State
Board of Education. This program, a product of the California
Association of Student Councils (CASC), has been in existence for
47 years and is the only opportunity for middle and high school
students from all across the state to speak directly with the State
Board of Education on issues affecting all aspects of their
educations.
SBHS students attend education advisory conference
Kendall Archer, 16, and Katie Thorpe, 17, of San Benito High School participated in the Student Advisory Board of Education conference Nov. 14-18 in Sacramento. The students were two of 60 students invited from the state.
SABE is a statewide conference to provide student input on issues of concern to the education system directly to the State Board of Education. This program, a product of the California Association of Student Councils (CASC), has been in existence for 47 years and is the only opportunity for middle and high school students from all across the state to speak directly with the State Board of Education on issues affecting all aspects of their educations.
Topics this year were: Student Motivation in Standardized Testing, Recognition of District Student Board Members, Preparation for Life after High School, Course Requirements and Alternate Accreditation, and Student Disciplinary Methods. The recommendation on standardized testing proposed fee waivers for college applicants that performed to a satisfactory level. Another stated that school districts would be required to respond within 30 days to student petitions for positions on school boards. Inclusion of financial management training and preparation for job seeking would be included in existing math and English courses according to a separate proposal. Credit for participation in athletics and performing arts rounded out a recommendation on curriculum. Finally, the students made suggestions for handling disciplinary problems with in-school suspension and teacher training.
On the first of the five days of the conference, members of the Student Advisory Board brainstormed these topics, broke off into focus groups, then spent the rest of the four days working on their proposals. They discussed relevant root problems, created applicable solutions, and refined a formal proposal with a specific call to action for the State Board of Education. Archer and Thorpe were an integral part of this process in keeping the delegation on track to create the best possible proposals with the most compelling solutions.
More information on SABE, the full proposals, and CASC can be found online at www.casc.net/sabe.
