Savannah- My name is Savannah McMurtrie, and I am a junior in high school. Being involved in my school and community has always been an important aspect of my life. You can often find me playing in the HBR pep and jazz band, and actively participating in Chess, academic bowl, and golf. As a student council member, Band Vice President, NHS member, and an EMS cadet at the Hinckley Fire Protection District, I strive to impact my community positively. This year, I have been honored with the opportunity to serve my peers as one of their student board representatives, along with Matthew and Alex. As a student board representative, we have the unique opportunity to share our perspectives and the student body's concerns with the school board. We attend board meetings, participate in discussions, and contribute to decision-making processes that affect our school. It allows us to voice our opinions and teaches us about leadership, responsibility, and the inner workings of our school district. This role has helped me grow as a leader and a team player, and I am grateful for the chance to make a meaningful difference in our school community.
Matthew- My name is Matthew Badal, and I am a junior at H-BR. I play golf, basketball, and baseball. I also lead Student Impact, a Bible study group, am the secretary of our FFA chapter, and am a member of NHS. This year, I have had the opportunity to serve as a student board representative alongside Alex Casanas and Savannah McMurtrie. In this role, I share the student voice in school board meetings. Not only do we share reports with the board, but we also send surveys out to fellow peers about lingering issues. As the data rolls in from the surveys, we, as student representatives, devise solutions to the problem with a group of high schoolers. Soon, we will travel to the middle school to connect with them and see how we can represent them better as we continue to serve this role. As I applied for this position, I considered the challenges and time consumption since I’m already playing three sports, plus I need to be mindful of my school work. But as I look back at my decision, I’m glad I applied as I have learned so much already from being in this role.
Alex- I am Alexavier Casanas, a junior at Hinckley-Big Rock High School, and I participated in several clubs and extracurricular activities. You may know me from being in Student Council, National Honor Society, Renaissance, or serving as Class President. You may have also seen me playing at basketball games, soccer games, or competing at track meets. When the position of becoming a board member came to my attention I wasted no time signing up to offer my abilities to assist our school and community. My job as a Student Board Representative is to come to board meetings and meet with Dr. Sonntag to discuss ways that we can improve our district based on what we feel, hear, or see that needs improvement. One way a Student Representative benefits our community is by understanding different issues from the student's point of view. As Hinckley and Big-Rock continue to grow in population, a large number of students are joining the student body each year. To accommodate this growth, Mathew Badal, Savannah McMurtrie, and I build relationships with several individuals to understand how we can support our students and the schooling system. We meet with a group of students regularly, send surveys, and are extending our position to the middle school to meet our objective. Since I’ve been a part of the board I have become a better leader and role model. As I continue to support our school and the community, I look forward to making the Hinckley Big-Rock Board of Education the most student-centered school board in the area.
