A Semester of SGA: A Reflection

A week before school started in August, I walked into an unassuming classroom in the lower A-hall. Soon, I would be a part of a group of friends that would tremendously impact the community in ways I never imagined before. This was SGA. The classroom became the haven of many great ideas. From building backdrops for Merry Movie Night, planning participation for Clubs, and creating cardboard boxes for the canned food drive, I grew and learned.

I’ve been very fortunate to be a part of a group that has enabled me to reach out to various parts of the school and community. In the hopes of giving some insight into what happens in our daily sixth-period class, here are some of the monthly SGA happenings.

We started the week before school started by planning parking. Stickers, tables, maps, and videos, the list went on, but we soon were ready to welcome juniors and seniors to their parking spots. Whatever the parking spot people may have got, it was great meeting old and new students as we geared up for the opening month of school. As school began, we worked on finalizing plans and ideas we wanted to fulfill. One role that I focused on was clubs. I helped manage club grants and club participation, and we rolled out two types of grants: the Jumpstart Grant and the Main SGA Grant. Both of these grants went well as we were able to help clubs fund their own projects to better the community. In October, we launched our fall fundraiser for Libby’s Friends. Through the following months, SGA spent our time planning fundraisers and activities like Homecoming Week, Powderpuff, the Student-Faculty Basketball game, the Talent Show, and much more. During all of this, we also worked on weekly dress-up themes, ran a successful canned food drive (around 20,000 donated!), and witnessed some memorable pep rallies as well.

Most recently, we finished our last fundraising event for Libby’s Friends: Merry Movie Night! Families and students from all over Vestavia came to witness Elf. Our team planned a variety of tables, such as a face paint station, reindeer food, and even a picture with Santa. Witnessing our community come together for an event like this was a great way to cap off our fundraising efforts this first semester, and I can’t wait to see what we’ll accomplish in the future.

SGA’s efforts would not be realized without our wonderful teachers, Mrs. Gwarjanski and Mrs. Watkins, who led our agenda and provided thoughtful advice and guidance. Alongside the teachers, I’m joined by a great group of executive officers and friends I’ve been so fortunate to be with throughout this year. They are: Virginia Eickholt (President), Anna Clarie Black (Administrative Vice President), Madelyn Wigley (Chaplain), Chase Kaiser (Treasurer), Annemarie Merrill (Director of Community Involvement), Sydney Allen (Director of Homecoming), Kate Hurst (Director of Publicity), Anne Douglas Nunnelley (Director of Spirit), and Sophie Williams (Director of Student Involvement). Additionally, many of our plans wouldn’t be possible without the work of our class officers and representatives.

As we eagerly approach the winter break, I encourage everyone to reflect on their year. Be aware and open to everything around you, and always look for ways to improve the lives of the people around you and the communities you are a part of. You can truly bring change, and I encourage you to find creative and innovative ways to do so.

I hope exams go well for everyone, but most importantly, I hope you all will have a great winter break, and an even better second semester.