Baron Banner received a number of letters regarding our story, “Three years without ASB elections.”
The article highlights Fountain Valley High School’s decision to select its ASB executive board through an internal application and interview process led by current ASB executive members, rather than through student-wide elections.
Dear Editor,
As the Co-President of Baron Bridge Builders, I agree with the selection process that ASB is using. In Baron Bridge Builders, we do the exact same thing. We interview candidates and select them based on their experience. We used to use the democratic voting process that ASB used to do, but this process seems to work better. The main problem with elections is that the student body is (generally) uninformed. It will be a popularity contest and the average voter has absolutely no idea who each candidate “is” and if he or she is qualified with the position. In the selection process, it is based off of the knowledge about the person and the members selecting the new Executive Board know more about the person that the voter does. They have worked with them, and understand the person’s strengths and weaknesses. They will know more about the person and if he or she is qualified. Although I understand that people want their voices to be “heard,” the election process is flawed. Thus, I support ASB and this process.
Dominic Cunneen (Class of 2015)
Dear Editor,
I feel that the ASB Elections should be carried out by the entire student body. If the purpose of the Associated Student Body is to make choices and represent the students of Fountain Valley High School, then the students should have the opportunity to elect the people who will represent them.
In spite of that, I do not feel that we should go back to the previous system of voting that was used three years ago. I think that if the school was to bring back the election process, the interviews should still be implemented so that the students could really gain an insight about the candidates and what they would do for the school.
For me, the ideal system for choosing the right candidates would be somewhere in the middle, with elections being carried out by the entire student body, but with some of the current techniques included.
Daniel Parker (Class of 2015)
Dear Editor,
As a senior of Fountain Valley High, I agree with both processes, more so with the current election process. Although in the past, students were able to vote for their ASB board, I believe it was merely a popularity vote. I can understand why teachers and board members did not like the previous process due to lack of knowledge of school politics. Even though I approve of the current interview process, I believe the candidates should express themselves in front of the entire school. In other words, they should demonstrate their leadership talents so all classmen receive a better understanding of who they are voting for. If our school individuals know nothing about their candidates, how can they know what is to come the following year? The election process should allow our possible incoming leaders the ability to show what they can bring for the future years.
Calvin Nguyen (Class of 2015)
Dear Editor,
In regards to the article on three years without voting, I believe the students should be able to vote for their ASB leaders. This freedom gives the student body a voice and allows everyone to choose who they want to be the leader of their school. Throughout the three years without elections I feel that without the proper elections, our leadership in the school has gone down. I have noticed my experience in high school has not been satisfactory. I believe it is only fair to the students to be able to elect the next year’s ASB members.
Kasey Leong (Class of 2015)
Dear Editor,
I believe it is not a big deal that we do not have elections. I side with Mrs. Silvertooth about how high school elections are nothing but popularity contest. As a student with experience, most of the time I had no idea who the candidates were. I ended up voting for whoever my pencil landed on.
The current process is much more effective and puts the best person in each open position. Having been through many interviews, I know how stressful the interview process can be. Undergoing that stress allows the panel to see how the candidate operates under pressure, if they think critically, if they can respond effectively and communicate their ideas concisely and in an easy to comprehend way, their leadership and their level of preparation going in to the interview. It is much more personal and a good way to determine the best fit.
I understand the right to vote is “important” and a constitution is “necessary” but I think everyone is blowing this out of proportion. Why does it matter? The kids running for positions are student leaders who want to make the school a better place. They’re all working towards the same goal. Instead of lashing out and wasting peoples’ time making a big deal out of this, I believe ASB should go about their business and be allowed to do their thing because I think it works really well.
Austin Mak (Class of 2015)
Dear Editor,
In response to the article you wrote about the ASB elections or lack thereof, I have a few things to point out. First of all, I believe this entire issue is blown out of proportion. The fact that there is such a severe backlash over the lack of elections is absolutely ridiculous to me. I agree with Mr. Orme that people would simply vote for their friends and it would turn into a popularity contest and then having to “campaign” for the “elections” would degenerate into a flurry of insults and attacks on social media because that is how our generation is. Calling it an “abuse of power” is completely unwarranted. What power is there to abuse in a student body at a high school? Where to have prom? I mean this isn’t America we are talking about or Russia, you know, REAL countries with REAL problems and REAL opportunities to abuse power. This is a simple high school in a simple town that nobody could care less about except those who run it. And an ASB constitution? Really? That is absolute overkill. We are a high school, what do we need a constitution for?
Ennis Khaleq (Class of 2015)
Dear Editor,
In regards to your article, my opinion towards the ”elections,” are broad. I can understand why freshmen who were used to voting for their student representatives in middle school were surprised that there were no elections at FVHS. When I was a freshmen, I was satisfied knowing who I would vote for in the future of the ASB council. However, some would argue that people would just vote for their friends due to popularity and I find that very ridiculous. Therefore, we should have some sort of requirement for those who are candidates. Can we be sure they know what they’re doing? How well-developed are their leadership skills? It’s very disappointing how we vote for a candidate based on their physical appearance, gender, age, and race. Regardless of those features, I believe we should have an election based on voting towards the content of their character. If that doesn’t work out, then how is the next generation going to develop with decades without election? More importantly, how well-developed will ASB be in the future compared to now?
Jonathan Vy (Class of 2015)
Dear Editor,
Although I’m graduating this year, I feel that not having an election is the right way to go. If we have an election, students will just pick their friends over someone who really deserves the job. If we let students pick their friends, we’ll be letting them pick popular candidates and not responsible candidates, which will lead to an unstable group of students that won’t take the responsibility of an actual ASB group. Some of the students are also being stubborn by saying that not having an ASB election in high school will lead them to not vote in the future for an ACTUAL election. That is just ridiculous by the students.
Jacob Rodriguez (Class of 2015)
Dear Editor,
The article was well written. However, I believe the subject is more complicated than what people believe. Both sides have both very valid points. If the student body were to vote, there is a very possible chance to elect someone who is unqualified. Where as if ASB were to select board, the relationship with the candidate could affect the decision, making the whole process unfair. From a third perspective, it seems as if both sides are unhappy because they cannot choose their friends to be on board. Realistically, the choice of ASB is more effective in my opinion. Although they might be friends with the previous board, they have learned the ropes and know the roles of ASB. If one wants to be on board they would have to apply and work their way to the top. This is the best option because it most resembles real life. Candidates can take their experiences in ASB and apply it in real life situations. In most companies and workplaces, you will have to work your way to the top. No one is voted into their position. Only those who have the dedication and will should be selected.
Brandon Le (Class of 2015)
Dear Editor,
I feel like this view point isn’t benefiting the students of Fountain Valley High School – we shouldn’t be able to just randomly choose anyone we want for ASB. ASB is important to our school and we should be voting for people that know what they’re doing and that have some experience with it. Therefore, from Freshman year and on, they can move up the list in seniority to get to the executive board members. This is more fair and makes more sense, and I think many others from the student body think this as well.
Kate Gordon (Class of 2015)
Dear Editor,
If I’m being honest, I could really care less about the elections. Obviously being a senior has influenced my opinion, but people are making this a bigger deal than it needs to be. A lot of people are very upset that ASB also doesn’t have a constitution ready to show BBN. Listen, I could really see a problem if some politician wanted to see a copy of the US constitution, but this is high school. Our ASB is run by people in the district so it’s not even like we are really making decisions anyway. People need to stop calling out Mr. Lamar as well. If you guys are trying to solve the problem, calling out Lamar isn’t going to do anything about it. Thank you for reading.
Reid Johns (Class of 2015)
Dear Editor,
I believe that the ASB executive board elected their next year[‘s] board very well and efficiently. I am on the executive board of Baron Bridge Builders, and we [also] interview the applicants [for next year’s board] that would like the positions they apply for. We do not let anyone else interview them because [as the previous board], we got to know them throughout the whole year, and from that we know how they work and their strengths and weaknesses.
Hamza Awan (Class of 2015)
