Student Advisory Council adds new member; Caroline Barquin advocates for “big topics that need to be talked about”

     “When I found out that I was picked to be on the Student Advisory Committee for the Superintendent…I was pretty excited because I want to get more involved in the school…” Barquin explains.

     According to Harford County Public Schools website, the purpose of this Council is to engage with the Superintendent and the Student Representative of the Board of Education in a meaningful dialogue of students’ views and perspectives. This communication between students and members of the board is ultimately supposed to identify the need for more educational and cultural inclusiveness and to improve the school environment based upon that information.

     NHHS’ principal Bryan Pawlicki sent out an email on October 6 that informed all students of this council. Students could submit applications in order to become a part of this program, and one of the students that was chosen was  Barquin.

     Barquin is focused on “making sure that [she is] voicing everybody’s opinion, not just [her] own.”  The Student Advisory Council’s first meeting took place on October 28. The meeting consisted of “about 30 students [represented] from every middle and high school of the county,” she says. During the meeting, members discussed “leadership projects that [they will] work on for each school.” In these assemblies, students throughout Harford County get to view “other people’s opinions and perspectives on things,” she states. 

     Other topics that were discussed during the meeting included “different issues…like mental health, equality in the school system, more representation of all races in the curriculum, and environmental problems at the school,” Barquin says.

     On the other hand, she states that she feels some pressure, “having to be like the voice of everybody”. But the benefits of this role outweighs the pressure according to Barquin. She believes that it provides her with “more leadership positions” which will “hopefully help [her] with getting into a good college.”

      Overall, Barquin’s main goal as a member of the Student Advisory Council to the Superintendent is to “make the school a better place because there’s a lot of problems,” she says. “Hopefully if I have my voice out there then we can get things done here (NHHS).”

     Outside of advocating for NHHS and the students and teachers in the community, Barquin’s hobbies include reading and spending time outdoors. She is a member of the Journalism staff and the varsity swim team. Eventually she wants to become an ecologist, which is a scientist who studies how animals and plants interact with their environment.