With a new school year comes a new cast of student government representatives and a list of ambitious plans. Tatler had the opportunity to speak to incoming president Natalie B. ’24 and vice president Rishi L. ’24 about their vision for the year ahead.
This interview has been edited for clarity.
Zane R. ’24 (ZR): What are your favorite moments or accomplishments from your previous years in student government?
Natalie B. ’24 (NB): The achievement I’m most proud of is when former VP Ava Y. ’23 and I came together to create Lakeside’s first homecoming. It helps bring all of the classes together at the beginning of the year and creates more school spirit. I also love May Day because it brings the entire Lakeside community together and is an opportunity for Stud Gov representatives of all grades to use their experience from working on other projects throughout the rest of the year.
Rishi L. ’24 (RL): May Day is definitely a big one. I’ve also loved working on different kinds of stress busters and assemblies, like the Battle of the Bands. Definitely hoping to have more things like that coming up this year.
ZR: Speaking of homecoming, are there plans for an athletic event tied to homecoming this year?
NB: This year, we decided to tie homecoming to the fall tailgate, which this year is girls’ volleyball. There’s also a football game that same night against Nathan Hale, so that’s relatively close by, even though we don’t have a home field.
ZR: Are there other projects you’re excited to implement this year?
NB: Through my involvement in Lakeside athletics, I’ve worked with Coach Lengel to establish a media day, which will hopefully happen soon during the preseason for fall sports. Eventually, if the fall sports photoshoot goes well, we want to expand it to the drama department as well.
RL: In my speech last year, I talked about getting therapy dogs to help with students’ mental health. I found an organization that does that sort of thing and reached out, so we’ll see what happens with that. It would be awesome to have a way for people to de-stress during the first few weeks of school.
ZR: What do you think will be the biggest challenge you’ll face in your position?
NB: I think it’ll be the responsibility of writing speeches, because I want to do our grade justice with my words. There are definitely some projects that people have been trying to implement for several years and have been unsuccessful so far, so also navigating that. Everyone on Stud Gov is very responsible and capable, so I know we’ll be able to get a lot done!
RL: As the VP, working with clubs; I know that we have a lot of clubs, so I’m thinking about how to make it easier for students to go to all of their clubs without having to eliminate any.
ZR: Who have been your biggest leadership inspirations throughout your time on Stud Gov?
NB: Definitely Mr. Bonar — he’s always available to have meetings with us and problem solve. I really appreciate how Dr. Bynum, Mr. Boccuzzi, and Mr. Bonar have met with all of us one-on-one and really shown that they’re interested in getting to know students and learn more about Lakeside’s culture.
RL: William M. ’21 for sure! He was president when I was a freshman, and he was the most articulate person I’ve ever known. He’s a super kind guy and built me up, supported me when I came in as a freshman. It’s really influenced how I think about leadership.
