The Kentucky Board of Education (KBE) consists of highly intellectual people within the Commonwealth who immerse themselves into education, allowing them to accurately govern all 171 public school districts. The Board develops and adopts regulations for Kentucky schools and the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) in order to better the overall education system in the state. It provides feedback and establishes final decisions regarding issues and ways to better components of the system. With its fifteen members of various backgrounds, it allows representation of creative minds contributing ideas to better the Kentucky public school system. Kentucky was one of several states that didn’t have a student on its Board of Education — that is, until October 2, when I was appointed to be the first student ex-officio board member of KBE.

In my sophomore year, while I was still adapting to the American education system, one of my friends informed me about an application for the Kentucky Department of Education Commissioner’s Student Advisory Council, a group of students who advise the Commissioner of Education on issues relevant to high school students, which was due midnight of that day. I remembered it at 10:30 p.m. that night, with just enough time to review its mission and the opportunities it had to offer. After realizing that it was something I wanted to take part in, I rushed to complete my application with only several minutes remaining before midnight. What compelled me about the council was how it provides students the opportunity to voice their opinion in a space where student voice is valued; it gave me hope that I could impact the education system. A couple of weeks later, I got the acceptance letter confirming I was one of eleven new students selected to be a part of the council for the year 2019–2020.

This new seat on the board finally gives students an opportunity on the decision-making bodies that influence our daily lives.

It’s currently my second year serving on the council, and having the ability to continuously be a part of conversations where I can expand my knowledge on student perspectives is truly amazing. In the second meeting of the 2020–2021 school year, Toni Konz Tatman, Chief Communications Officer for KDE, announced to me and my fellow council members that KBE was establishing a spot for students on the board, and that sophomores and juniors within the council were eligible to apply. I remained hopeful that I would get the spot until a month later, when KDE revealed that the new board member would be randomly selected by the Commissioner. With those odds, I believed I was never going to be chosen, but still remained ecstatic that one of my wonderful fellow council members would get the opportunity to help serve our schools.

We had a tight schedule to submit our applications so that the student representative could be selected before the October KBE meeting. Because of this, my application once again wasn’t sent on time. Although I had submitted all the written statements and parent approvals before the deadline, I had yet to get a response from my principal. As the clock approached 2:00 pm on September 18th, I realized I wouldn’t be able to finalize my application in time, but I was somehow able to sneak the principal consent form in two hours after the strict deadline. I waited for a couple of weeks, still not hopeful, but was then emailed by Toni Konz Tatman, who asked me to give her a call. She told me I was the one the Commissioner chose to be on the board. I still can’t accurately describe my emotions when I heard I was chosen: a mix of gratitude, confusion, responsibility, excitement, and many more feelings that couldn’t be explained with just words. Nonetheless, I am and will always be grateful for having this experience. I hold a deep appreciation for the advocates that helped give this opportunity to KDE Commissioner’s Student Advisory Council members.

I am especially grateful for this role because my parents instilled in me the value of education from a young age.They didn’t receive an adequate education and saw its consequences upon immigrating to America. They stressed the importance of excelling in education in order to obtain the knowledge necessary for a successful journey in life. Growing up, I was able to develop my own personal connection with education and establish what it meant for me. It all started in a small town in Maryland, at a Montessori private school which contained a unique curriculum. In a school with 50 students ranging from PK-6, and my class usually being about five students, I was able to focus on Environmental Science, Chemistry, and Mathematics from second to fifth grade. When I was eleven, I moved to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and attended Greek Community School up until my eighth grade year. This was an international school where I immersed myself in the different perspectives of the diverse student body. My focus was on World Religions and French. I moved to Louisville, KY, after freshman year had already started because we realized the influence that an education, especially one from Kentucky, could have on my success. I ended up in the Family and Consumer Management Pathway at Eastern High School in which I am able to explore who we are as people and how to provide for our community. This is my third year in the public school system. Approaching this position on KBE, I assumed I’d be at a disadvantage because I lack some of the experiences that would be helpful in identifying key issues, but I realized that having a different perspective on education allowed me to acknowledge the diverse opinions towards education in Kentucky.

The variety of schools I attended has led me to see the importance of student voice. The opinions of students are valid and deserve to be represented within high positions, and this new seat on the board finally gives students an opportunity on the decision-making bodies that influence our daily lives. It’s an assurance that students can be a part of impactful conversations, that we can be changemakers. This position didn’t come out of nowhere; it was established because of the dedication and intelligence of our students. This opportunity for the students is monumental, and I will try my best to do this position justice.

I am certainly not the smartest student in the Commonwealth. I’m not the best speaker, nor am I the person who understands all aspects of education. But I lend my open ears to everyone I come across. I might not agree with what others say all the time, but I respect what they believe and their dedication to their beliefs. The last thing I would want to do within this position is represent only myself. I will seek opinions from everyone in order to accurately represent Kentucky’s students. As I go on, differing ideas will arise on how to best improve our public schools, but I was able to come in with the intention to advocate for all students all across the state and make sure they are heard so that they can gain the skills to lead a successful journey. Hopefully, my work will leave an impact on the next generation of students in Kentucky.

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