MJUSD students drive some key academic decisions

Did you know that several new high school course offerings for next year have resulted from ideas generated by our students this year?

One of my first actions when I became Superintendent of the Marysville Joint Unified School District was to establish a meeting space where students could openly voice their concerns, ideas, and recommendations. About two dozen student leaders from our three high schools — Marysville, Lindhurst, and Marysville Charter Academy for the

Arts — joined the forum and now gather monthly to have lunch with us and help us brainstorm ways to improve our educational system. We call this group our Student Engagement and Leadership (SEAL) Team.

What I find fascinating is that some of the ideas students have brought to the table were exactly what the district needed to do all along.

For example, they asked us to expand honors courses in the middle schools, add dual enrollment courses to simultaneously earn high school and college credits, and offer parent education options for our community. The students also asked us to introduce new world language options, such as American

Sign Language, and to offer an in-school academic support program called AVID at our middle and high school campuses. I am happy to report that we will be offering middle school math honors next year, AVID at every middle and high school, and American Sign Language at each high school. We are also opening our Adult Education Program in August.

The SEAL Team also asked for internship and community service opportunities, which is why the Board of Trustees recently approved the addition of a new position to focus on exactly that. We are currently looking for the right person to join our team as a CTE Work Based Learning Specialist, a position that will involve working directly with businesses in our community to build partnerships and create internship and externship opportunities for our students.

As adults and educators, we look at our students and see them as an important part of our education system, but sometimes we forget that these are our future leaders and that their individual journeys through the educational system gives them on-the-ground insight and experiences that can help us shape our system for the better. With that in mind, we value their input and appreciate their willingness this year to candidly share their thoughts with us about what has worked and what has not.

Bringing this team of student leaders together has reinforced my belief that our young leaders are the best guides to help MJUSD improve programs and expand opportunities that will best prepare them for college and a career. I am extremely proud to serve our students, who I learn from each and every day.

At our Board of Trustees meeting on Tuesday, we honored these dynamic leaders. Not only have these students set the path to grow future student leaders, they have transformed the concept of student leadership called to action.

Thank you for allowing me to share a bit about our incredible students with our community. To our parents and guardians, thank you for sending your children to our schools and giving us a chance to build a better future together.