LR’s Student Government Association has an exciting year of activities and events planned for students and the community. This year, SGA intends to earn the Felix Simon Award for the first time since the school was founded in 1998.

The objective of the Felix Simon High School Award is to allow SGA student council officers, members, and their advisors to evaluate their council against a shared set of standards and create an opportunity for student councils to be recognized for their effectiveness, according to the Maryland Association of Student Councils.

“I think we will gain some branded legitimacy as a strong council in the eyes of others (because we already know that about ourselves) should we join the ranks of the other schools in the county to receive the award,” commented French teacher and SGA sponsor Mrs. Miller. “Aside from that, it’s a great self-evaluating tool to make sure our SGA runs smoothly and addresses the needs of our school more effectively.”

“[The Felix Simon award] essentially involves the acquisition of points through holding different types of events,” explained Junior Josh Drasin, the secretary for the SGA. “The point system is divided into different portions and categories, each concerning a different type of event or task, and the school has to achieve 80% of the total offered points to achieve the award!”

SGA distributed much of the agenda throughout the year not only to meet the award application deadline in February, but also to create community involvement early on. 

“We want everyone participating as much as possible,” said Miller. “They should consider not only coming to events run by SGA, like Homecoming and Leadership Symposium, but also in giving feedback, in helping plan activities, publicize, etcetera.”

The middle of October saw a successful spirit week and pep rally: School spirit skyrocketed with the introduction of ‘Battle of the Classes,’ a spirit competition that awarded $500 to the winning class. Students won points for their class by participating in the spirit days and checking in at lunchtimes, decorating a hallway for their class, and winning games and showing the most unity at the pep rally. It was a close battle, but the senior class of 2020 boosted themselves up 50 points above the trailing junior class through the screaming competition.

Shortly after homecoming week, the annual Leadership Symposium was held. Typically featuring a guest speaker and workshops, this event awards service hours to attendees and promotes involvement in leadership.

Drasin noted, “A lot of events are being held earlier this year so that SGA can use them in their submission of Felix Simon.” In the past, Leadership Symposium was held in April at the end of the third quarter.

Since the increase in SGA involvement, General Assembly meetings have shown higher numbers of attendance and less work for more hands. Students should pay attention to announcements and advertisements so they don’t miss more fun activities like the Holiday Hangout, Shoe Drive, and more!