Students Sound Off

Students Sound Off A look back at the first year of the Westerville Student Education Foundation

By Sophia Fratianne

www.westervillemagazine.com T he Westerville Education Foundation’s mission is “To enrich the learning experience and broaden the minds of our students through the funding and support of innovative educational programs.” Let’s start at the beginning. Unfortunately, school budgets aren’t limitless, but many teachers’ passions are. To bridge that gap – to provide grants to teachers whose projects aren’t covered under the school budget – the Westerville Education Foundation was born. While the group was an immediate success, it soon realized that many students had ideas that weren't being heard.

“Education is about the students, so it is very important to include them and their perspectives in this process,” Executive director of the Westerville Education Foundation.

This was a gap even the Westerville Education Foundation wasn’t equipped to bridge. So, the Westerville Student Education Foundation (WSEF) was created. The group began its journey with three local high schools in early 2019: Westerville North, Westerville Central and Westerville South. The group’s mission is to better support the entire student body. Now, a year later, the impressive list of achievements made by the Foundation’s students continues to grow.

The WSEF helps the school community tackle issues such as mental health, the environment, inclusion, safety and school curriculum. Topics brought to the school board by the WSEF allow for fresh perspectives and innovative solutions to issues that were only discussed for years. The students have a say and an opportunity to make real change.

From student mentorship programs to emergency situation training, the stu-

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dents work hard to implement solutions. In 2019, for example, students sat with the director of food services to discuss reducing waste in the school cafeterias and worked alongside their vice principal to create better awareness and resources for mental health. This year, plans are already in motion to create a school board policy to improve environmental sustainability and update school initiatives already in place. “The students are incredible,” Moidu says. “They’re going to change the world.” Similar to the foundation for teachers, students in the WSEF can also apply for grants to fund projects. This allows students the opportunity to turn ideas into reality. Student president and senior at Westerville South, Cassie Cotter, says the WSEF divides responsibilities between its marketing committee, grant committee and board development committee. The students plan and apply for grants to fund their ideas.

Moidu says by offering students the tools they need to make a difference early on, they don’t need to wait until later on in life to create real change. It’s rare that such responsibility and power is earned by a group of young adults.

“Last year confirmed that young people already have ideas but can also create new paths to a solution,” Moidu says. “It’s great that from a young age, the students are able to see the impact they can have.”

Sophia Fratianne is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.

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