Senior Natalie Finn

Photo Ryan Strobel

Was it hard to be thrust into the role of the presidency without planning for it?
“It wasn’t so much a challenge to assimilate to the role of the presidency because I’d run previously and I was kind of excited to get the opportunity to finally be the president. Where the difficulties came from was the committee that I had to run because a lot of it was made up of members who had different loyalties, so I think that the problem was trying to mesh us together after that happened to the committee.”

How did you finally get everyone to accept you?
“Honestly? Doughnuts. I brought them in one day and that really made people excited to come.”

What projects are you currently presiding over?
“Right now it’s a lot of the end of the year responsibilities. We’re planning the senior semi. We’re really working hard to have a good and safe end of the year, so I’d say one of the things I’m most accountable for is working with the administrators and the students in order to make something fun that is safe.

“We’re planning on doing a senior picnic on the last day of school in place of the senior march. It’ll be at 1:30 and everybody will go outside and get their yearbook signed and there’ll be food trucks. We’re thinking of having a lip sync battle with teachers and students. We’re having a Most-Spirited Day and whoever’s the most spirited will get a prize.”

What are some challenges of being president?
“One of the challenges of being president is not taking criticism personally. A lot of times I think people view decisions I make as just me, but in fact it is the whole committee. I have a hard time with not being able to please everybody.”

How do you balance school and being president?
“It can get tricky around events, trying to make sure everything goes smoothly. I have a study period, so every study period is like a work period. I’ll go in and we work one-on-one to make sure everything’s okay. But I’m passing; I’m good.”

Junior Brendan Foley

What are your responsibilities as class president?
“This year is probably the most busy year to be class president. Going into it, I didn’t know it was mostly about raising funds for the class, so really it’s planning fundraisers and advertising the class events and leading and organizing Steering Committee.”

Why did you run for president?
“Freshman year I got cut from the soccer team early on and that was a let down. I thought I should try a club and try to get elected for an officer. At first, I thought president was too much so I ran for vice president, but I switched last minute to run for president, and I’m so glad I did.”

What are some benefits of being president?
“It’s been a cool experience. I am close to our advisors, and I know somewhat how to speak in front of a large audience, though I still get nervous. I like meeting new people and it’s fun leading and making decisions with other people. I definitely learned how to communicate and talk to different kinds of people.”

What are some challenges?
“Staying organized for keeping track of class dues and prom tickets is a challenge. Kids who don’t go Steering Committee are very quick to complain and don’t know how much hard work Steering Committee puts into planning.”

How have you been planning for prom?
“It’s a long drawn out process. Initially, we booked the date sophomore year. Junior year is about collecting class dues and raising money to put the initial deposit down. Then it’s choosing your theme, your DJ, what kind of tickets you’re going to sell, what your design is, and choosing flowers. We had a lot of trouble with organizing it because all the Saturday dates in May were already booked, which was a little stressful because we were thinking about it last year before most Steering Committee committees. Still, it’s a lot of fun, and I definitely learned a lot.”

How have you been balancing sports, school, and being president?
“Definitely this year, it’s crazy because you have prom, SATs, all these college things, and it’s the hardest year academically for me. I’ve definitely been stretched thin. I definitely miss some things, I definitely put Steering Committee as a top priority because of prom. So I’ll miss a practice to attend all the meetings.”

How has being president affected your social life?
“A lot of people call me ‘Mr. President.’ I don’t like when people call me that, it’s weird. I don’t want to be stuck up. Being president has made me go to class events. I went to homecoming, and it was a freshman dance practically.”

Sophomore Laura Shi

How much do you rely on the other officers?
“I really rely on everyone who comes to Steering Committee, especially my advisors, who help me make sure everything’s in order.”

What are your responsibilities as president?
“Mostly we have to collect class dues, plan events, which this year was Battle of the Bands and we’re gonna have a sophomore semi, which is on April 29. We are still looking into more fundraisers, but that’s our main goal.”

Why did you run for president?
“It was always something I was interested in in terms of a leadership role. I enjoy student politics. It’s really rewarding when you plan so hard for an event and you make sure everyone is okay with it and it actually happens.”

What are some challenges of being president?
“Sometimes it can become a let down when you work so hard on planning something and it ends up getting cancelled.”

What are some benefits?
“I love being president. I think the responsibility is really important and it’s something that I take very seriously. The sophomore class is really supportive of what I do and I love when they give me advice because I love doing something that they want to happen.”

What are some of your hobbies?
“I like to dance. I dance around eight hours a week. I also like to swim. I also model.”

What are some items on your bucket list?
“I would love to travel to Australia, I’ve never been before. I’ve always wanted to see the different habitats and all the cool animals. I would like to go skydiving and I really want to own a chocolate fountain.”

How has being president affected your social or personal life?
“I don’t think it’s changed me in my personality, but I definitely saw a change in how I interact with people because more people knew my name and that was really cool because I would say “hi” to them and strike a conversation and they’d tell me things they wanted and you could work towards that. It’s been nice knowing that people trust you and know who you are.”

Freshman Mattie White

What are some of your responsibilities as president?
“We have to run the Steering Committee once a week after school and we basically plan events. We have to go to Student Council before school once a week on Thursdays.”

Why did you run for president?
“I think I have leadership qualities that other people don’t have and I thought that I could run other successful events that other classes have failed in the past.”

What projects have your presided over?
“So far we’ve had a dance which brought in 107 kids and we’re looking to do future events just to unite the class. We’re currently planning a class picnic that will happen during lunch.”

What are some challenges of your job?
“Probably collecting a general consensus of what the Steering Committee wants.”

How much help do you receive from the other officers?
“I receive a good amount of help from the other officers; I definitely could not have planned events without them.”

Do you think that being president has affected your social life?
“Not really.”

What are some of your hobbies?
“I like to play the piano, play soccer, and basketball.”

How do you balance sports, music, school, and being president?
“Sometimes when we’re in the midst of holding an event it can get a bit hectic. Sometimes I’ll have to miss a sports practice or band rehearsal here and there to manage it, but not often.”

Who are some of your favorite artists?
“I like Billy Joel and the band The Eagles.”