Students on Sept. 3 returned to Red Hook’s schools for the first time under New York’s bell to bell smart phone ban.
Eight days later, the Board of Education received a report on how the first week went from its two student liaisons, Marina Kregel and Maddie Clements.
“That’s something really big that I was really excited to be able to share with them,” Marina said, “since that’s such a large change.”
Student liaisons, or ex officio student members, have played an important role on Red Hook’s Board of Education for years by relaying the opinions and concerns of the school populations on important issues. The non-voting position is so vital that New York for the first time this academic year is requiring all school boards to give a seat at the table to a student member.
This year, Marina and Maddie have been eager to serve their classmates. Already, they’ve provided reports at both board meetings held in September and October, running down a list of updates on student clubs, sports and events.
“I think that student representation is really important when it comes to our own education,” Marina, a junior, said. “Often, students feel like they aren’t being heard, truly.”
Maddie, a senior, noted how important it is that she and Marina “get to represent everybody and just get to hear what everybody thinks.” To that extent, they said they not only engage with classmates regarding what topics to elevate to the board, but also have tapped others to speak with their friends and report back.
Maddie said recent student board members served as good role models to emulate. “Seeing that leadership and somebody representing all of us was really cool.”
Last month, Maddie and Marina took part in a virtual training session with hundreds of staff and students from districts across the state, as well as state Sen. Shelley B. Mayer and state Assembly Member Carrie Woerner. Marina called the training “helpful,” mentioning several student and adult board members spoke.
“They sort of shared tips and tricks of how to interact and make sure your point is coming across,” she said.
The following week, the pair visited Red Hook Village Hall and spoke with Mayor Karen Smythe about government.
“We learned a lot about our local government and what they do for our community,” Maddie said.
For the Red Hook student community last month, the pair reported to the board that, despite initial resistance to the state-imposed cell phone policy, the results were immediately positive. They explained, students were finding different ways to connect and adapt, noting some are bringing in old-fashioned iPods to listen to music and digital cameras, and the amount of talking in the cafeteria has increased, even as the number of laptops has increased, too.
“There was a dance competition in the senior lounge one day,” Maddie said. “Just, super cool stuff has been going on that would not have been happening last year or the last couple of years.”
Marina called the board position “a really good opportunity to build our own speaking skills and leadership, communication and teamwork.”
Maddie said, “We’re excited. It’s going to be good.”