For sophomore year, 2020-21, I ran for President of my BTHS class. I lost, but I learned a lot in runing for President.
Tutors and Support
BTHS is an academically tough school. We get a lot of homework and we are pushed forward academically. Many students need support. We have tutors for different classes in various periods. I think we need more support. So I will work with the School administration to see if we can get more tutors.
The BTHS Website
The “T” in BTHS stands for Technology. But looking at the technology at BTHS we need better tech!. Let us start with the website. The website isn’t modern and not very responsive to the different devices that go to the website, like smartphones, tablets and PCs. It needs to be updated. BTHS, the largest high school in the U.S., is filled with talented students who who know how to design and create websites. We have greate computer courses and design classes. The school should tap into that talent. As President, I will work with the School Admin to see if we can update the website and redesign it. Do you know that when Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft was in high school, the school merged with another school and they needed help to put together the schedule for all the students and thier picks for classes. The school was so frustrated, they asked a young Bill Gates and his computer friend in school (who helped him later create Microsoft) to solve the problem based on their understanding of computers. Our school is deep in technology. We need to tap into our students to at least suggest what a great website for the school could look like.
What data and information on the BTHS website is buried and hard to find. It needs to be easier to find. Similarly, the different clubs and sports teams should have their own subwebsites on the school’s website. They should be easier to update with pictures, video and information about each club and sports team. Having more information and rich with pictures and videos will help everyone feel more connected in such a large school. Also it will encourage more students to get involved.
Diversity
Diversity at BTHS is what makes us all so strong. It is what makes New York City great. Unfortunately, our school has been marred with some racial incidents like some hate crime graffiti. We need to continue to work on bringing all of us together. I have been a member of the teacher-student Respectful For All Committee this passed year. I will use my experience on that committee to work with students and teachers to find creative and constructive ways to continue to bring our community together. Students need to take leadership on this issue. As President, I will seek out all points of view and seek to implement efforts to celebrate our diversity.
Technology and Supplies
I don’t know about you, but several times this year when I was doing a homework assignment the book I was assigned to was missing a page or two on the pages I was assigned to. This happened several times this year. I am sure if this happened to me, it happened also to many students at BTHS. I had to reach out to other students to take a snapshot of the pages and email me.
Similarly, when I was taking DDP, at some point, we had to download a program. This program was a Windows program. I have a Mac. At home we figured out how to use Apple’s Bootcamp to partition my hard drive at put Windows on it so I could put that DDP app that I needed. But it wasn’t easy. I had to find a free license of Windows and then put the DDP app. What if a student didn’t have a Windows PC, Mac? What if they had a Chrome computer. How would they download that Windows app for DDP? You can’t put it on a smartphone or tablet.
The point of both these stories is that we need better tech and supplies. Why aren’t at least one copy of the books we use digitized as a PDF and on the servers of the school? That way, if someone is missing a page, they can quickly go to the school’s site or school program and get the PDF pages.
In terms of the apps we use that are required, why aren’t there solutions for students who don’t have the right equipment to use at home? For example, that Windows App could be hosted virtually on a server and so if someone can’t download it, why not connect through a tabled or a Chrome book and use it virtually over the internet.
We need practical solutions for supplies and equipment for students.
As President for the class, I will advocate for all students so that students aren’t surprised with books with missing pages and apps they have to download that wont work on their devices. It is hard enough to study without having to worry about finding what you have to read or setting up the program you need.
Student Communication
One of the challenges of a large school like BTHS, one with over 6000 students, is how the students can connect with each other and building a community. Even without this virus pandemic, the large size of our school makes it hard for everyone to communicate with each other. Many students use social apps like Instagram or an iMessage Group, to connect with each other and discuss the school. There is no program that the school uses for the students to organize and connect. Outside of school there is Reddit and Discourse, two services that allows people to create forums and groups to organize. We need to explore such technology and create a service for all the students to communicate and organize with each other. Right now, clubs and sport teams mainly use email. Email is fine for communication to be distributed to a group. It is not good for group organizing and communication.
There is a lot of open source programs are school could use to communicate. Jistsi is an open source program that you can video communicate with a lot of people. Its like Zoom or FaceTime or GoogleMeet. But the difference is you can host it on your own server for better security. I am hosting my own Jitsi server. You can see it at jitsi.nicholasvasilescu.com.
We also need more student events in the real world. We need to create more events, on site and school and offsite, where students can come together outside of class.
I will work to advocate on these issues for everyone in the class.