As the school year slowly comes to an end, that means elections for student congress are just around the corner. The class of 2020 officers prepare to pass down the torch to the juniors as their virtual campaigning begins. 

The official positions up for grabs are president, vice president, secretary, and public relations. Each plays their own important role when it comes to class and schoolwide affairs.

Running for president is Lexi Batayeh and Kenneth Bauman; for vice president is Ndiaga Diouf, Kylie Rice, and Madison Walker; for public relations is Landon Cereska, Avery Partlow, and Jadyn Petty; and for secretary is Jaclyn Bommarito. 

Deciding who to vote for in any sort of election is no easy choice, especially when the decision has to be made between spectacular Shorians.

Although all positions play a significant role, the class president position holds a little more responsibility, such as being a student trustee on the Lake Shore Board of Education, leading student congress meetings, and just simply Robert Couck’s (Student Congress Advisor) right-hand person when it comes to issues or activities regarding the student body. 

Here is what each candidate running for president stands for: 

Lexi Batayeh

Batayeh is actively involved in the school’s audition-based show choir and has also taken part in two school musicals: FAME and Seussical the Musical, which was unfortunately canceled due to the nature of events that occurred this year. On top of that, Batayeh is an active National Honor Society (NHS) member and has been in student congress since her sophomore year.

Some words that Batayeh uses to describe her character are, “ambitious” and “hard-working”. 

If Batayeh wins the class of 2021’s vote, her main goal as president is to get the student body to engage more with school events and activities. She explains, “I want to try and improve school functions to get the students more interested and get the school spirit back.”

Batayeh also points out why she deserves to win the class president position, “I feel like I can be a great leader and can be trusted by my classmates to help and make our school a great place to be.”

Kenneth Bauman

Bauman is the current junior class president, president-elect of Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA), NHS member, and a key club member. Aside from that, he also partakes in Shorian sports as a varsity cheerleader and track star. 

He labels himself as an, “outgoing and a positive role model for all.”

His goals for next year if he wins the president position are to continue fighting for a co-valedictorian at Lake Shore and engage the class of 2021 in more school-oriented events. 

Bauman expresses the reasons why he deserves the position: “I have made tons of change and push for change and believe that’s what the student body and Lake Shore as whole deserve.”

Each candidate for every position is reaching out to the student voters by sharing their accomplishments on different social media platforms in hopes of building their credibility and proving why they deserve the spot they are running for.

Official elections begin May 17 and voting will be made available through a link Couck will send out through Schoology, which students can also share. 

Happy voting juniors and the best of luck to all candidates running!

Gallery • 2 Photos

Kenneth Bauman

Bauman's campaign post.