Perhaps your heart thudded as the chime of the final lunch bell on March 10 sparked a sudden realization that you missed the required informational meeting for aspiring ASB applicants. Or maybe the responsibilities of the available positions just didn’t appeal to you. Fortunately, ASB is not the only way you can get involved in creating a positive school culture. Applications for many of next year’s activities are currently open, so consider checking out these several leadership opportunities on campus with simple prerequisites. 

Student Forum 

Student forum functions as an extension of ASB, though it does not take up an additional class period in your schedule. Instead, class representatives meet in the morning of the first Wednesday each month to comment on the success of school events such as dances and dress-up days. Each grade’s ASB presidents and vice presidents host occasional class meetings to discuss grade-specific plans and students can join additional groups like the Club Audit committee. Representatives are also in charge of announcing the upcoming events and important updates featured in the weekly bulletin to their homeroom. Around April, members who have attended enough meetings are invited to skip a day of school to vote at the Election Convention, which determines the next group of elected ASB members. Two students per homeroom are selected at the beginning of each school year, so if you wish to be directly involved in proposing changes to the school community, remember to raise your hand high during re-elections.

“While being in student forum, I personally believe that my public speaking skills have increased greatly as I am more comfortable with speaking in front of others. Just hearing everybody communicate to come up with ideas is really motivating as it shows the community aspect of Northwood and how we work together to find solutions and create different ideas.” – Kaitlyn Shiang (9)

Link Crew

Link Crew trains juniors and seniors to help freshmen transition into high school, which may feel daunting because of the larger social environment with swarms of unfamiliar faces. Members are assigned to a freshman homeroom to support their wellbeing through emotional check-ins and fun activities. As positive role models, Link Crew members remind students that school is not just a time to gain extensive knowledge on various subjects, but also a precious time to bond with peers. Members build lasting friendships with their partners and learn how to be more approachable. Link Crew is the perfect opportunity for incoming upperclassmen to come out of their shell and guide new students through the transition phase. 

“I joined Link Crew to make sure that every freshman felt that they had someone to talk to because I know that without the support from my friend group from middle school and my older brother who was attending Northwood at the time, I would not have done well my freshman year especially because I was already stressed from Covid.” – Logan Garcia (11) 

Peer Tutor

After you’ve completed a course, your teacher may recommend you to be a peer tutor the following year. Peer tutors can choose to either work in the library’s Tutor Center during periods seven and eight or assist a teacher during a class period that would benefit from an extra pair of hands. While tutoring may not sound like a leadership position, it truly is. Teaching requires excellent communication skills to meet the individual needs of students and reliability to build a relationship with mutual respect. If you’re hoping to be a peer tutor for a subject you’ve enjoyed studying, definitely talk to your teacher about your interest in helping next year’s students master challenging skill areas.

“You have to take initiative in the teaching choices you make. Peer tutoring introduces you to a unique skill set that helps you understand how to communicate in a way that will challenge the students and simultaneously not discourage them. It’s really a great experience to give back to the Northwood community that has helped me grow for four years and give students who aren’t fluent the support they need to integrate into the humanities course.” – Anthony Foo (12)