Last Speech

When I came to this school four years ago, I was lucky enough to see Roosevelt at its best. Everyone was so filled with spirit and school pride that it inspired me to get involved in the Rough Rider Community in any way that I could. So when it was time for elections, I ran for president and I won. Throughout that year I knew that something changed, but I did not know what at the time. As I was busy planning some of the freshmen activities I felt that something was missing.

What was missing was that though I had this title of presidency, I wasn’t doing anything president worthy. I mean sure, my class was one of the few freshmen classes in a long time that participated in the hall decorating contest, but I felt like I had done nothing that year. So when I heard about Leadership, I got an application and in the tenth grade, not only was I once again class president, but I was the only tenth grader in the leadership class. This was the year that forever changed my life because I met people, people who were just like me and wanted to get involved, wanted to make a difference.

It was that year that I met four great leaders, their names were Abigail, Nancy, Sonia, and of course Jenesis. These four people took me under their wing and as the youngest of the bunch they looked to me to continue on their mission to not just fight for Roosevelt but to fight for its students. It was that year, as we were transitioning into small schools, that we banded together to fight for our education and should be involved in the whole transitioning process.

That year was a difficult time but as long as I heard Jenesis’ words of wisdom, I knew that everything would be ok. And when I felt that everyone wanted to give up, I took on a bigger role and made my stand, making what is now known as Student Voices’ first motto: “Don’t make decisions about us without us!” and made petitions to help with our protests. And in the end, though some hard decisions were made, we got that we wanted and saved many of the classes and resources that we still have today but continue to be put up for the chopping block, but because of the students and people who speak out, they continue to stay here and the hope for a better education one day continues.

As the year ended, I felt that my time with leadership had come to a close, and so I founded a club, which we all know as Student Voices. I feel, no wait, I know that we have made a positive impact with this club and I am proud of every single one of you who have participated. Despite the struggles and drama, we accomplished so much and I look forward to seeing what this club will become. But I am sad to say that my time here has come to an end and as of now, I am no longer president of Student Voices.

From this point on, Lizbeth Banuelos and Diana Ochoa will be in charge and I hope that more people will get involved. I wish you all the best of luck and I look forward to seeing what you will be able to accomplish in life whether it is with this club or in the real world. Thank you for letting me be your president and I know that I am just a call away if help is needed.

http://rhsstudentvoices.webs.com