On Wednesday, April 30th. Mr. Anastasio announced over the loudspeaker that Sylvie Webber and Nico Sokolowski were elected as the new Board of Education Student Representatives. Old Saybrook High School recently held an election to pick two new student representatives for the Board of Education for the 2025-2026 school year. The election took place the week of April 20th, but first, what is the Board of Education? A Board of Education is a group of elected people who are responsible for overseeing public schools and their policy and operations. Some of these responsibilities include: curriculum, budget, staff hirings, and representation of their community. The two current student representatives at OSHS are Juniors Samantha Walsh and JV Contin. Contin says, “One main thing we do is report all the events, academic news, and opinions from the High School to the Board in order for them to better understand our school and improve our education.” Contin follows by saying that he highly recommends this position and it was very beneficial for him, commenting , “It definitely has made me more aware of the varying opinions of people in our school.”
This year, 5 sophomore students ran for the position. They each had to create a campaign video on why the student body should vote for them. Mr. Anastasio sent out the videos along with a link for students to vote on. Each underclassmen voted for who they felt would best help communicate their ideas to the Board. Sokolowski and Webber are both looking forward to this role next year. “I was happy to hear that I won, especially because this is something that I’m passionate about and I cannot wait to get started next year.” Sokolowski commented. Webber said that she was “astonished by the results” because “all of the other candidates were smart, talented, and involved.” Sokolowski also said, “In this position, it is the job of Sylvie and I to have a voice for students and to be a bridge between the Board of Education and the student body.” Most candidates believe that their campaign is truly what will win them the election. Sokolowski believes his “unique and less serious” video made him stand out compared to his other candidates. Meanwhile, Webber said that her leadership positions prior to the election made her stick out from the rest.
