Rye High School students will soon have a greater say in how their school is run — now that the school has decided to bring back student government.
More than 600 students recently listened to speeches from 12 candidates who had been campaigning vigorously for the opportunity to represent their classmates as the first officers of the new Student Government Association. Four were elected, and they’ll begin their terms in September.
Bringing back student government was the brainchild of new RHS Principal Andrew Hara. Student government associations, he said, are common at public schools across the country. He thought it would be a great addition to RHS.
“As part of my entry plan at the beginning of the year, I spoke to students about what improvements could be made at RHS,” Hara said. “Almost every student spoke about having more voice in decisions that impact the school. The introduction of student body officers establishes a group of student leaders who represent the voice of the whole student body.”
Elected to the new organization were rising senior Ryan Crozier as president; rising senior Philip Nemeth as vice president; rising senior Samantha Yeh as treasurer, and rising junior Daniel Morris as secretary.
“The RHS SGA was established to amplify student voices across the entire school through the democratic process,” Hara said in an Instagram post about the election. “The huge voter turnout over the weekend is a great sign that we’re on the right track!”
He urged students to “start thinking about” what issues they would want their new representatives to address in the year ahead.
“This is a truly unique opportunity to be the first to paint on a blank canvas and set the tone for where this role goes in the future,” Crozier said. “I’m super excited to work alongside our fantastic administration to make sure that the students’ voice is treated as the most important.”
RHS students have for years elected class officers, whose main job was to raise money for prom and plan student events.
Andrew Laudel, a faculty advisor for the new program, said the student government officers will be focusing on issues like school policy and student concerns. SGA officers will be invited to Board of Education meetings to give a student perspective when the budget is being discussed and school events are approved.
The new officers were already very involved in student activities and the community. “This is a new position to be held so with that comes experimentation,” said Yeh, who was class of 2026 treasurer. “We definitely hope to further foster a sense of community and implement fun and exciting student-based opportunities.”
Yeh said that the candidates’ goal in campaigning was not simply to list ideas for the following years or say how RHS could improve, but to let students know that their new representatives will be a voice for students by taking their advice.
The SGA officers are still figuring out what their goals are for the upcoming years, Yeh said, but they are “hoping to implement a suggestion box to see what the people of Rye want changed.”
