The Student News Site of Wilde Lake High School

The Paw Print

The Student News Site of Wilde Lake High School

The Paw Print

The Student News Site of Wilde Lake High School

The Paw Print

Griffin Diven Elected to Represent Students as SMOB

Griffin Diven Elected to Represent Students as SMOB

On April 20th, after a county wide vote at all middle and high schools, junior Griffin Diven was elected as the next Student Member on the Board of Education, also known as SMOB for the 2016-2017 school year.
Junior Griffin Diven has always aimed to be an influential part of his community. From joining class council his freshman year to three years participating in the Appalachian Service Project, Diven has always put his passion and time towards impacting the community.
Every year two candidates compete for the student position on the Board of Education and the chance to make a difference in the county and this year junior Griffin Diven has decided to take this opportunity.
The Student Member position on the Howard County Board of Education was originally established in 1988 to communicate the student opinion on topics that affect students and their education.
After a long application process of essays and in-person interviews, Diven, along with fellow candidate Brooke Walker of Atholton High School, was selected by the Board to run in the general election for SMOB.
Diven’s main inspiration to run for SMOB came from his passion to represent the student voice. According to Diven, “The SMOB is a representative of the student and I’m not running to support my own views, I’m running to make sure the student voice is heard.”
Diven’s drive can also be seen through his message and advocation of inclusion for all students of Howard County. According to Diven, in the past, not all student voices have been represented equally and one of his goals as a SMOB would be to get all views from all different kinds of students and to advocate for full inclusion on the Board.
This view was heavily influenced by attending Wilde Lake. Diven believes that learning in Wilde Lake’s diverse environment has given him new perspectives and experiences that he wouldn’t have been able to achieve at any other school.
Wilde Lake’s diversity has not only provided Diven with new experiences, but “Going to Wilde Lake has given me a great opportunity to know more about every student’s unique background” said Diven.
Diven incorporated this ideology of inclusion into his campaign by reaching out to both middle and high school students from all backgrounds via social media outlets like Twitter to see what they are passionate about and what issues they feel are important in the county.
Not only is Diven passionate about advocating for the student voice but he has qualifications to do so.
Diven has held various leadership roles such as co-founding the Wilde Lake Youth Politics Club and running the social media for Wilde Lake’s SGA. He hopes this experience will come in handy during his tenure as SMOB.
Diven plans to visit all middle and high schools in Howard County during his time as SMOB.
Through this, Diven hopes to get the opinions and views of students from all over Howard County in order to help him if he is elected.
Diven will be sworn in after the current SMOB’s, Rachel Lin, term expires in July.

 

 

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Griffin Diven Elected to Represent Students as SMOB