The School Board seeks two student representatives and an alternate to provide input and insight for the 2022-23 school year. Student representatives are non-voting members and serve for one term concluding with the final School Board meeting of the school year.
Their role focuses on providing input on School Board meeting agenda items on behalf of their fellow students.
The School Board chose its first student representative in November 2017. In recent years, School Board meetings in Virginia have become places of protests and arrests, as parents rail against mask mandates, student segregation, and falling achievement scores, and sex assault allegations.
Police and mandatory bag-checks are now fixtures at Prince William County School Board meetings. Since September 2021, the public has been roped off, prevented from sitting near elected School Board members during regular meetings at the Kelly Leadership Center, 14715 Bristow Road near Manassas.
Despite the upheaval, School Board members who spoke with Potomac Local News say having student input on the School Board benefits the community.
“Yes, I believe students should be participating in the board even in this politically charged environment. They chose to apply fully, knowing the responsibility they are taking on,” said At-large School Board Chairman Dr. Babur Lateef. “High school students should not be shielded from the issues of the day. Leadership and representation is something Americans do better than any other country in the world.”
Student representatives may choose not to sit in on heated discussions and get support from adults when needed,” said Occoquan District School Board member Lillie Jessie, who pushed for the creation of the student School Board representative.
“For me, student input is not only an asset but critical,” said Jessie, who spent 20 years as the principal at Elizabeth Vaughn Elementary School in Woodbridge. “I have always sought student input as a Title I supervisor and as a principal. I had a Young Gentlemen’s Club, a student-run Bank, Ladies of Distinction, and scheduled student data chats in our executive suite. If you really want to know what students are thinking about or how to solve a problem, ask a student. If you want to know why students are not learning, ask him or her instead of giving him a failing grade.”
Prince William County’s push for new student School Board members comes as students in Spotsylvania County Public Schools seek more representation. Since the School Board fired its superintendent in December, upheaval has been the mood during county School Board meetings.
Students told the Fredericksburg Free-Lance Star they want more opportunities to address school officials outside of the regular raucous Board sessions.
In Prince William County, the school division has a student senate, with representatives from each public school in the division. Three student senators are chosen to sit on the county School Board.
“The current student senate structure provides a great environment for students to interact on issues that are important to them. I believe we can do more with the student senate,” added Lateef. “On a side note, our current student members never once shied away from the heavy responsibility of weighing in on some of these controversial issues of the last two years either in public or in private with school leadership. I am very proud of our tremendous student leaders and I believe they will be far more prepared for their future having gone through this experience.”
Students interested in a seat on the School Board must:
- Complete and submit the online application by 5 p.m. on Friday, March 25, using their school-issued Microsoft Sign In to complete application.
Finalists Will Be Required To:
- Complete a proctored essay
- Attend an interview
- Complete and submit a parent consent form (PDF)
Students who applied for the student representative position but were not selected may be asked to serve on the Student Senate for the 2022-23 term.
