Charlie Stoter
Editor-in-Chief
Making its infamous return to R.J. Reynolds High School, Student Government Association (SGA) is back and better than ever. Leading the resurgence of SGA for the Demons, in her second year of teaching, is CTE teacher, Laurin Neal.
“Student government came to me and I felt passionate about it, so here we are,” Neal said. “I’m there to advise and I’m there to help [students] to make the decisions, but it’s up to them and it’s a student run club.”
At its core, SGA is a service club aiming to benefit our school community and give a voice to our RJR student body. SGA represents the change students want to see and the ideas that need to be heard.
“Anything that happens at RJR, SGA wants to be involved, whether it’s orientation, a dance, a fundraiser, a service project; we are here to serve the students,” Neal said. “Students will follow students before they’ll follow teachers.”
RJR’s SGA leadership team will be composed of thirteen representatives: a president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, and historian representing the entire student body and a president and vice president for each grade level.
“Student body president and vice president are going to be responsible for being the face of student government,” Neal said. “Whether that’s giving a speech at graduation or representing student government at a dance; student body president and vice president are going to be those people.”
SGA will function as a connecting link between students and administrators, on the school level as well as the district level. SGA will be in attendance of both PTSA meetings and School Improvement Team meetings to offer a student perspective on common issues facing the student body.
“Student body president is going to be in on those two [meetings],” Neal said. “That way it gives students some type of voice that they can if there’s an issue that comes up. It’s not just teachers deciding it, it’s not just Mr. Freeman deciding it. The vice president is going to back them up in that leadership role and also be responsible for fundraisers and the Inner Club Council.”
Student government is for everyone, even those without leadership positions. Students who are interested in speaking up on behalf of the RJR students will attend one SGA meeting a month. Here, students will come together to discuss class and student body specific ideas.
“We want a very diverse officer class and club so that way we can have many people coming from different backgrounds,” Neal said.
This year’s SGA officers are: Students Body President, Adrian Jones; Student Body Vice President, Lilly Zaks; Student Body Secretary, Helen Wilson; Student Body Treasurer, Marion Towle: Student Body Historian, Trip McMillan; Senior Class President, Millie Powers; Senior Class Vice President, Luke Sanders; Junior Class President, Kaeleigh Brenner; Junior Class Vice President, Zariah Finley; Sophomore Class President, Finley Reynolds; Sophomore Class Vice President, Ruth Rackley; Freshman Class President, Celia Griffin; and Freshman Class Vice President, Anna Claire Wenker.
“We’re new, we’re starting up, it’s going to be a little bumpy and we have a lot of lot to learn, but the next election I’m expecting a lot of people are interested, because it’s not teachers who hear what students want, only students do,” Neal said.