School’s Senate Leadership Elected
May 17, 2018
“The students elected someone they are comfortable with.,” Abnner says. “They know our faces; we aren’t scary juniors that no one has seen before.” “We were going for the friendly, approachable vibe,” Maddie says in agreement. The approach paid off, in terms of the election results and in the student engagement the duo drummed up. “We have already had a bunch of conversations with people saying, ‘the day students are struggling with this’ or ‘the underclassmen are struggling with this,’ Abnner remarks. “And we reply ‘okay, what can we do to help?”
Maddie knew that she and Abnner would work well together and as a current class senator she has insight into the workings of Cate’s Senate. She says that she wants more people involved in planning events and managing the budget. Abnner, who isn’t currently part of Senate regularly attends meetings, asking questions and raising concerns – something Maddie hopes to continue to see from other students. “We want everyone to be part of the conversation,” she says.
Maddie credits her advisor Bryan Rodriguez for supporting her run. “I wasn’t sure if I wanted to put myself out there completely.” When she did make the decision to run “[Rodriguez] was supportive all the way.” Abnner, who had Rodriguez as a teacher said that he felt comfortable running ideas by him and looking to him for guidance.
While next year’s leadership are friends now, the paths they took to Cate were unique. Abnner says he was only considering East Coast schools. “I was planning on Hotchkiss, Deerfield,” says Abnner, who is now thankful that his home in L.A. is only a two-hour drive away. He says that his experience camping helped with the transition to Cate, where he felt comfortable upon arrival.
Maddie is from Shanghai and she only considered Cate for high school, though her start to Cate was “tough.” She says that her first trimester was difficult and though she made friends she “missed home a lot.” She says, “I didn’t feel like it was a good tradeoff to miss out on four years with my family back home.” Though it didn’t take long for her to adjust. “After the first Family Weekend in the fall, everything calmed down and things started to change for me.”
Maddie and Abnner are already looking ahead to business next year. Buses to Oxnard, a sautéing station in the Raymond Commons, and more input for student functions are all on their radar. To new students Maddie says, “Don’t feel like your voice is less important because you are new student. Put yourself out there the first day. I know it’s really tough meeting new people in a foreign environment but just put yourself out there. Everyone is so responsive.” Her advice to the student body next year: “We want to hear your ideas. It’s never too early to start making change.”