Students and SGA speak on Monday night election training
Not many people on-campus are familiar with the fact that there is an election training scheduled for Monday study hall. With less than 24 hours until the event, there still isn’t a lot of information out there. What is known is that the Student Government Association, along with Dean of Students Ari Baum, is planning an event that will highlight the importance of the Nov. 3 United States Presidential Election and civil discourse.
As for the programming itself, “there are going to be four form meetings from 7:50 to about 8:50 pm and after [the students] can follow links and float around — different clubs are going to have stuff prepared and are just going to be talking how the election will affect their respective groups,” said Andrew Chirieleison ’21, the co-president of the Student Government Association on the night’s events. The form meetings will be required while the club meetings, featuring seven different student-led organizations (HASOGI, DEI & SAFE, SAMH, YRC, YDC, and the YDSA), are optional. “This is a great opportunity to support your peers, practice civil discourse, and develop a greater perspective as it pertains to the implications of politics in American society,” read the SGA sponsored message on Today on The Hill.
“We want students to hear different perspectives from different groups and engage in civil discourse … since we all are going to be affected by elections in one way or another,” said Chirieleison.
Even though not many students know what is happening, there is still confusion even among those aware of the event.
“I understand why we are doing it, but there has not been a lot of information out there about what exactly is going to happen,” said Bella Basile ’21 Sunday night. However, Sasjha Mayfield ’21, SGA co-president with Chirieleison, stressed the importance of the events.
“It’s going to be a hard couple of days for everyone, if not a hard full week for everyone, so we want to come at it from a place of empathy and love for one another and not be boastful about who wins. But also, if who you are rooting for does lose, there is still hope and we can still respect and care for each other,” said Mayfield. Mayfield reiterated on the form meetings: “We have asked all of [the SGA] senators to speak with their form deans and come up with something.” As of now, the plan for the 6th form meeting is to discuss questions such as “Why is it important to vote?” and “Why is representative democracy important?”
However, the tight schedule for this year leaves little room for teachers to alter their programs. With study hall canceled on Monday, teachers are reportedly giving more homework for the weekend to avoid the risk of running behind schedule.
“Thanks to [the form meetings], I have a test tomorrow instead of Tuesday,” says Andres Villareal ’22.
Additionally, many students question the event’s relativity since the majority of the student body is unable to vote this year.
“Most of us are too young to vote, so what’s the point of this whole thing?” said Pierce Hart ’23.
The election training objective appears to be well-intended, given how tense the political landscape is becoming and the depreciation of political discourse. Leaders on campus believe this election is one of the most significant events this year and speak to the importance of staying tolerant of others’ opinions and being civil about our political views. But despite the planning efforts and the intentions, students are still confused about the value and the format of the event as well as its effects on academics.
