Ralph Waldo Emerson Elementary School

Emerson Student Council - Mrs. Ivins, Advisor 

  

Student Council 2012-2013 

About Student Council (click to view presentation or read below):

 

In September we held classroom elections for representatives after students who met criteria were nominated by teachers, and permitted by parents, according to our Bylaws: three representatives in each 4th grade, four in each 5th grade and five in each 6th grade. In November members ran for Executive Board by displaying campaign posters, making speeches, and held elections by ballot within their grade levels. Note: One Student Council member in each fifth and sixth grade classroom earned automatic membership in Student Council this year by earning the highest points last year.

 

Meetings are run by parliamentary procedure (taught at the first meeting), facilitated by a 6th Grade President, with minutes taken by a 6th Grade Secretary. A Fifth Grade Vice President is in charge of attendance and filling in for the President in their absence. A Fifth Grade Treasurer is in charge of counting money from fundraisers, writing out deposits, entering information on ledger sheets and making a report of our funds at meetings. Our Fourth Grade Assistant Vice President is in charge of helping the principal during monthly assemblies, and awards the Spirit Tiger. Our Fourth Grade Historian keeps all the memorabilia in a Student Council Scrapbook kept on display in the school vestibule.

 

This year's committees consist of Community Service (tutoring younger students during recess and more), Public Relations (writing the school newspaper and taking photos), Character Education (modeling and teaching character traits through skits at assemblies and rewarding character buttons to students of the month), and Staff Assistants (helping Emerson staff with projects or clerical duties). Each committee is facilitated by a Chairperson for each grade level. One member per each classroom serves as a Delegate to relay information to and from classmates and distribute urgent news from the Advisor, Executive Board, or Committee Chairs. Special Event Coordinators organize and supervise major Student Council events, such as Food Drive, PSSA Pep Rally and more.

This year's goals are to model and encourage positive school behaviors as part of R.O.A.R. and character education, raise money for needy Emerson families, raise awareness and donations for causes, raise school and district spirit by hosting fun events, participate in service learning projects, and encourage students and staff to wear school colors every "Waldo Wednesday".

2012-2013 Student Council contributions and activities:

April 2013:

• Hosted our annual GO BANANAS pep rally for the P.S.S.A.'s. The 6th grade council members took photos and video to represent code of conduct do's and don'ts in a slideshow. We encouraged everyone to wear yellow to show how bright you are. The yellowest from each classroom won a banana pen. We taught and sang the "Testing Shuffle" on testing strategies. Sixth grade cheerleaders did a fantastic cheer and we helped get everyone's sillies out with the tooty-tah.

• Purchased bananas to give out for free to every 3rd through 6th grade PSSA test taker on the first day of PSSA's.

March 2013:

• Hosted our Shamrock Count! We hung 253 paper shamrocks in the hallways for every student to tally. Three 1st place winners and four 2nd place winners received shamrock shakes!

• Hosted our annual Hats On Day benefiting the Foundation for Children with Cancer. Students and staff pay $2 to wear a hat in honor of cancer victims. The favorite hat from each classroom won pretzel coupons. A total of $425 was raised.

• Helped register Emerson parents at our Barnes and Noble Night.

• Donated profits from Twisted Tuesday pretzel sales to the Buck Up project benefiting the Homeless Shelter: $55.

• Donated profits from Twisted Tuesday pretzel sales to the Ronald McDonald House charities during their telethon. Our $60 pledge was called in by our Student Council president.

February 2013:

• Hosted our annual Uncle Jerry's Tees fundraiser and created our budget.

• Voted to host the school spelling bee in memory of a former student and council member Michael Duncan.

January 2013:

• Hosted our annual Multicultural Day. Students and staff dressed in the colors or symbols of their culture to showcase the learning in harmony celebrating Dr. King's dream. Participants also contributed cans of soup relative to their culture. We collected 172 cans of soup for the local E.R.A. food bank at United Christian Church. Please visit our special page about our dedication to Martin Luther King, his national monument in Washington DC, and the amazing civil rights timeline DVD created by 2008 Student Council: Keeping The Dream Alive

• Student Council members wrote essays as part of contests sponsored by the Elks on "What the National Anthem Means to Me" and the United Way on "Volunteerism".

December 2012:

• Hosted our annual Sweet Dreams Day where students and staff wear pajamas and slippers for a donation. We raised over $1000 and purchased Walmart cards to help needy Emerson families have a better holiday!

• Donated $600 towards a stereo sound system for Emerson.

• Purchased a new digital camera for the school.

November 2012:

• Hosted the annual Thanksgiving Food Drive providing food collected from students and Walmart gift cards for 10 needy Emerson families. Food collected by each classroom was first sorted and calculated for value. Then the food was equally distributed to the 10 packages. Recipients were designated by the school nurse.

October 2012:

• Hosted Red Ribbon Week to promote a drug-free life. Prizes were in every classroom at the end of the week to anyone wearing Red for Wear Red Day while also displaying their red ribbons. We also sponsored a poster contest and provided prizes to the top two winners in each grade.

• Hosted Think Pink Day to honor those who have been diagnosed with breast cancer, and awarded the Spirit Tiger to the pinkest classrooms.

• Started a collection of pink Yoplait Yogurt lids, each worth ten cents for the Komen Breast Cancer Research Center.

• Ran the R.O.A.R. store for students redeeming their positive behavior reward tickets for supplies and prizes.

September 2012:

• Sold Philly Soft Mini Pretzels on Twisted Tuesday as a fundraiser and healthy grab and go breakfast before school for only 50¢.

For more information, please contact Mrs. Ivins at emersonschool@aol.com.