What’s the purpose of the SLC and how does it serve the school?
SLC stands for the School Life Committee. It is the closest thing Bay has to student government. We try to bridge the gap between students and administration, hence the name School Life Committee rather than Student Life Committee. The SLC has two committees called Academic and Community Life to focus on those aspects of life at Bay.
As a leader, how do you make sure the SLC reflects Bay’s culture and represents the entire student body?
It’s a very Bay form of student government. For elections, you self-nominate and then you vote by grade. I think that when you have to make speeches and run a campaign, that’s high-pressure; it discourages a lot of people from applying. You lose the kids who have the great ideas but don’t feel comfortable running a campaign. We did a huge restructuring of the SLC last year, and one of the things we were talking about was the application process. We asked, “Do we want to be more traditional?” It was something we really thought a lot about. We decided, “No, we appreciate that some kids hate public speaking, but they would have great ideas.” I think you get a much wider range of people applying.
How can students get involved and become leaders at Bay?
Any opportunity you’re given to have your voice heard, take it. When I was a freshman, I didn’t realize how valuable but also how impressive it is that Bay gives us so many opportunities to have student input. I think it’s something I’ve taken for granted because I just assume that’s the way everything is. Talking to friends at other places, it actually isn’t [the way everything is]. It’s so unique and special that we get these opportunities, so don’t pass those by.
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