What does it take to represent the voices of hundreds of students? At SJHHS, the ASB recruitment process is where it begins. Coming into the second semester, the Stallions ASB is ready to welcome and recruit newly appointed student body presidents, vice presidents, commissioner roles, and representatives.
With an ASB cabinet ranging from thirty to sixty students, the overall process of the SJHHS ASB spans over the course of 4 months.
Taking a deeper dive behind the scenes, applications for ASB feed into three groups; Freshman representatives, president and vice president positions, ASB commissioner positions for sophomore, juniors, and seniors, and lastly, the elected positions such as ASB president etc. All students applying for ASB must meet a minimum GPA requirement, 3 teacher recommendation letters, and additional materials needed based on the position they are applying for.
“That’s where the teacher recommendations come in very very handy, especially if the teacher takes the time and fills it out because it gives us a lot of information about the student that we need,” said activities director and ASB teacher, Brooke Valderrama.
Although students’ academic integrity plays an important role in the selection process, ASB places a strong emphasis on students’ character and personal skills they bring to the SJHHS community.
“We need kids in ASB that take initiative or self-starters, and strong work ethic, and that don’t need to be guided or told all the time what to do,” said Valderrama.
SJH ASB also prioritizes reaching all grade levels, especially freshman, by conducting group interviews and evaluations to view how well each student works in a group setting. For freshman, space can be limited due to position availability for underclassmen,
“Its good to be a part of it, we take 11 {freshman}, which is a lot compared to some other schools that don’t take that many,” said Valderrama.
“I would say freshman year is probably the most difficult to get accepted into ASB because there’s a limited range of positions you can apply for,” said by Hailey Palmer, who’s been a member of ASB for four years and is currently the ASB President.
Throughout this process, the freshmen however are not the only students required for interviews. For students who may not of won the elected positions, those same students may still apply for commissioner positions. Sophomores, Juniors, and upcoming Seniors who have the desire to apply to a commissioner position such as activities or athletics commissioner, must have an interview with newly elected president and vice president of ASB alongside Ms. Valderrama, as well as go through a separate application process.
“We really want to foster a community of connectivity, so I think that is really what we’re looking for this year, and we’ve built a great panel of students that are hardworking and enjoy being with each other this year,” said Palmer (12).
Despite the extensive process, ASB’s primary goal is to create a community that encourages inclusivity, individuality, and connection.
“We have 57 students in ASB currently and they definitely represent every type of student on campus, and you don’t have to be the loudest in the room to make a difference, there’s a lot of students who are diligent and efficient, who aren’t the loudest but they’ve really made an impact,” said Palmer (12).
