The Student Council Executive Board for the 2022-2023 school year has promising goals for the upcoming year, including providing more resources for mental health awareness, creating school events, and promoting an inclusive community, members of Student Council said.

Junior Andy Ko, 2022-2023 Student Body Co-Vice President, faced intense academic pressure this past school year, which has inspired the Board to focus on improving students’ mental health and bringing available resources to light, he added.

“Though [South] is already spreading messages of mental health, [Student Council] believes that the efforts are not nearly enough,” Ko said.

To prioritize mental health, the Student Council plans on collaborating with mental health clubs such as SAFE Club and Elpida, Ko said.

Additionally, South’s first full year back in person returned school events to their former glory, junior Drew Duffy, 2022-2023 Student Body President, said.

“We wanted to embrace the fact that we could be in person and have those fun activities that we’re used to,” Duffy said.

Next year, the Student Council hopes to work with new Principal Dr. Barbara Georges to plan an advisory committee to improve communication between the student body and administration, Duffy said.

Furthermore, involving more students in planning events such as Homecoming and the Canned Food Drive will do more than just improve their popularity, it will also benefit South as a whole, junior Noah Herman, 2022-2023 Student Body Co-Vice President, said.

“[Including more students in school events] will implement new ideas, build off of successes, and make the school a better place,” Herman said.

Another goal is to improve the boys’ bathrooms, junior Ben Freidinger, 2022-2023 Student Body Co-Vice President, said. One part of that is putting up dividers in the boys’ bathroom stalls for more privacy, Ko said.

“[The lack of dividers] causes inconvenience and unnecessary lines within the boys’ bathroom,” Ko said.

Suggestions to improve South are not limited to Student Council members, and students can talk to any Student Council members directly or email them, Freidinger said.

“If [students] have an idea that they think would help the school, just reach out,” Freidinger said. “We might not be able to make it happen, but if we can, we could definitely use more ideas.”