SHILOH TODAY Elementary Student Council By Katerina Foley Student council in elementary school gives students the opportunity to learn about community service, along with civics and government, in a student-friendly environment outside of normal classroom work. At Shiloh, fourth and fifth-grade students elect a student council at the beginning of each school year. Currently, the program is under the direction of Mrs. Rebecca Blount. In order to give more opportunities for leadership, the council is divided between the fall and spring. Each student who desires an office position gives a speech before the elections. During the speeches, projects are presented that students feel would be important and impactful. The projects that are chosen each year reflect the mission statement of the church, which is “to reach Northwest Arkansas, America and the world for Jesus Christ.” The fall student council chose to take on three major projects. In October, they hosted a coat drive for the children at a local public school, and they collected a total of 188 coats. The students were excited to deliver the coats to the school’s “Care Closet” that immediately began calling students in to fit them with a new or gently-used coat. In November, they collected lip balm and foot powder to support project R.E.D. Friday, an organization that honors servicemen and women by meeting their physical needs before deployment. For the final fall project, the council hosted a week of dress-up days to raise money to buy farm animals through Baptist Response. The generous gifts given this week allowed the council to purchase 3 cows, 3 sheep, 3 goats, 20 6 ELEMENTARY STUDENT COUNCIL chickens, and 2 water filters for this ministry. These gifts allow missionaries to share the gospel and provide training in life skills and nutrition. They also provide additional income to families who are struggling. After the spring officers were inducted, plans were made for three more ministry projects. In February, they chose to support Allison Harris, a third-grader at Shiloh. Allison designed a t-shirt for Kendrick Fincher Hydration for Life Foundation. Our students wore their favorite T-shirt and donated $1 that counted as a vote for Allison’s design. Shiloh donated a total of $315.00 to promote hydration and prevent heat-related illnesses. Miss Harris won the contest, and her shirt design was used at the organization’s annual fundraiser. Later in the month, the student council teamed up with Book Buddies, which provides fifth-grade reading buddies for our first-grade students, to provide new or gently used picture books for the kindergarten students at Knapp Elementary School. Students also enjoyed Book Character Day with an assembly hosted by a special guest book reader, Captain Hook, on donation day. 01
9 Publizr Home