By Gabrielle Trujillo, 17 (she/her) Pasadena High School ‘24
On August 3rd, the majority of PUSD students were dreading the end of summer, and bracing for the start of a new school year. But members of PUSD’s Student Think Tank were emerging from our summer internship by preparing to deliver a presentation to the PUSD Board of Education. Our goal was to urge them to consider our proposal in which we asked for student Board representation from all six PUSD high school campuses.
The idea of pushing for student representation on PUSD’s Board of Education has been on the Student Think Tank’s agenda since we started during the pandemic lockdown in January 2021. During the 2022-2023 school year, our team decided to take up student representation as one of our primary projects. At the time, I was in the advocacy committee, and my group dedicated the spring and summer 2023 to the important issue of finding pathways to place student voice at higher levels in the district. But of course, this couldn’t be done overnight. August 3rd, 2023 was not the beginning of our journey for student representation at a district-level, but it was the day we proposed our student board member structure to the district.
PUSD Student Think Tank members with CIPD leadership and Ethnic Studies team after making their first presentation to PUSD’s Board of Education in which they proposed student representation on the BOE; April 2022
The PUSD Student Think Tank is not the first group to be interested in implementing a student board member. We couldn’t just make up a structure and state that this is what our district should have–we needed evidence and reasoning behind it. As we conducted research, we not only found student board members in different school districts, but also found different structures. This begs the question: what kind of structure best fits PUSD? Our district encompasses six high schools that offer an array of opportunities to diverse student populations. The student voice conversation is an important one to have, and it’s important to discuss not only amongst students, but also at district leadership levels. As students, we believe that not only is representation important, but that active participation in a system represents the full body of PUSD students–and not just one individual–is critical.
In fall 2022, PUSD’s Board of Education granted the Think Tank time to research the most effective and equitable structure to implement student voice. We have done extensive research on structures, such as singular student board members at Culver City School District, Poway Unified School District, Arcadia School District etc, or larger student governance structures such as at the East Side Union High School District in the Bay Area. We have also brainstormed new structures such as creating student governance through committees. We are interested in the representation of all students, including those who have had negative experiences with education–as it is often that their voices are not heard.
Gabrielle Trujuillo with fellow Student Think Tank Members, Sopjhia Chou, Maude Windsor, and Olivia Barrios at their recent presentation to PUSD’s BOE; August 2023
In summer 2023, students came together during the Think Tank’s first summer internship to conduct in-depth research to design a structure that would give students confidence in sharing their voices at the board level. Additionally, Think Tank members presented at PUSD’s Board Policy Committee meetings in May and June 2023 as well as the district’s Legislative Committee meeting in September 2023. We also gave updates and received advice from PUSD board members as well as PUSD administrators.
The Think Tank came across California’s Ed Code–Bylaw 9150–which was brought to our attention in 2022 (thanks to PUSD Board Member Kim Kenne) that states that a student may be invited to sit on the board if they get 500 signatures, after which they would have a preferential vote. With Bylaw 9150 serving as a base for our structure, we wanted to bring multiple students’ voices to the board in order to be more inclusive, and ensure equitable representation at each campus.
The structure that the Think Tank proposed on August 3, 2023 targets issues faced at schools and bridges the gap between students and the board–an urgent issue within PUSD. This structure features a 24-student Assembly with representation from all grade levels and all high schools, including a six-student Council who are made up of juniors and would be voted in by the secondary school student body and would participate in board meetings and PUSD leadership meetings. These Student Council Members would rotate attendance at board meetings and would cast a preferential vote made by the Student Council and Assembly.
(Link for structure can be found here)
The structure that the Think Tank proposed on August 3, 2023 targets issues faced at schools and bridges the gap between students and the board–an urgent issue within PUSD.
The Think Tank would not serve on the Student Assembly or Council; instead, we would provide oversight to the election process and offer training to elected students. We are a student-run project, and our goal is to develop solutions to common issues within PUSD, advocate for student voices, and create a safe space for students to meet. We also worked with the Board to create a distinction between high school ASB representatives who have been giving campus updates at district board meetings for over a decade. These representatives would continue to attend and give reports but would not be part of the Student Assembly and would not cast preferential votes.
When it comes down to it, students are the ones who go to school. We deal with issues on a daily basis, and we are the ones who can provide the best input on what’s important to our constituents. For example, in 2020, the California Department of Education reported that only 68.9% of PUSD students enrolled in college. As we know, college isn’t an automatic route to success. However, the alternative path becomes more difficult when schools do not provide support to students who are not going to college. There are other urgent issues–including gender neutral restrooms, pronoun preferences, restorative justice and more–that elected student members can address and provide viable solutions.
By implementing student voice, the district will update its list of priorities to become more modern and address student needs. The idea of education as a whole was traditionally for the wealthier classes of people. As times changed, education became more accessible but leadership structures have continued to look the same. On August 3, 2023, PUSD’s Student Think Tank presented our formal proposal for an elected Student Assembly and Council at PUSD’s Board of Education Meeting. Under Bylaw 9150, we asked the Board to adopt a structure that promotes equity and diversity. On November 16, 2023, the PUSD Board of Education approved our proposed structure, and gave us the green light to move forward with our plan.
Since then, the Student Think Tank has helped make edits to the official PUSD website to include information about student board members and how to apply. We have also worked on marketing, through designing flyers and a video (with the help of KLRN Pasadena) to explain to students how and why they should apply. It’s important that we advertise to all schools equally, and we’ve done so by presenting at all high schools within the district. With the support of our community, we are excited to implement a Student Assembly structure in PUSD.
Our proposed structure prioritizes student voice, and will be one of the first of its kind in California. Student voices should be uplifted through a structure that allows all students to decide the best choice is for our own education. By giving students at each high school a platform to speak out, students will feel like the Board is listening to their opinions, and the Board can make decisions that would benefit PUSD’s larger student body. The goal of our structure is to improve students’ experiences at PUSD schools, and incentivize them to get involved with issues they feel passionate about. As we finally put our plan in motion, we are officially accepting applicants for the Student Assembly. It’s exciting to be a part of history and make a change in my community. I hope that this structure is around when I graduate from college, and I’ll get to hear about the amazing things the Student Assembly is doing.
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Gabrielle Trujillo is a rising senior at Pasadena High School (PHS) and is in her fourth year of participating in the PUSD Think Tank. She attends PHS’s Law and Public Service Academy, and just finished her summer internship at Hahn & Hahn LLP as well as a summer legal institute at Loyola Law School. She hopes to pursue a career in Law.
To learn more about PUSD’s Student Think Tank please visit their website;To learn more about the Student Assembly and Council please visit this link.
