Students at Garfield Park Academy are getting hands-on experience in leadership, democracy, and self-advocacy through student government. Roughly 30 students in grades K-12 were selected by their classmates either as representatives or alternates, to represent their homeroom class through the Student Council.
The group typically meets once or twice a month. In October, they sponsored a Halloween Parade for the elementary students. After the parade, students gathered in the Media Center, where both the Student Council members and elementary students met, talked and enjoyed a snack. Recently they completed their annual Thanksgiving Food Drive, making posters to promote the activity to help families in need.
According to Armanda Rodrigues, a mentor who oversees the Student Council, meetings of the Student Council allow students to talk about issues at the school, giving students a voice in promoting change. Self-determination is a key element of the evidence-based Teaching-Family Model used throughout the school.
“Students learn appropriate ways to address an issue or idea, and how to respond to new situations when they arise. When they help shape changes here at the school, students learn to feel more confident and capable of affecting change outside of school. When they are ready to leave Garfield Park Academy, they will take these skills with them as they build self-determination,” she concluded.
