This 2023-24 school year, the long-awaited amending of the Miami Palmetto Senior High Student Council Constitution is underway. The last time the constitution was amended was seven years ago and much has changed since then.
The process of amending the constitution is lengthy and precise. It starts with the three “branches” of student government: the Administration, which consists of the school’s principal, Victoria Dobbs, and the Student Council sponsor, Elizabeth Valero; the Senate, which consists of the student government board, class boards, committees and chairs; and lastly, the Homeroom Representatives, which consist of one person elected from every third-period class to ensure that students from all corners of the school receive representation. These three “branches” are those that will ratify the new Constitution.
The process is a lengthy one, and many people are confused about why exactly the constitution needs to be amended, with the most prominent issue being timeliness. The last time the constitution was amended was in 2017, making the information outdated. There are concerns about elections, specifically election rules, and how current ones are not fair to all. Student Council President Clayton Detant explains the reforms to these rules.
“We did make it very clear how election rules should be, regarding campaigning regarding bullying or harassment, whether online and physical, regarding what you can and can’t do in your campaign, regarding how you cannot have a teacher or staff member endorse you, so anything that kids felt gave one student an unfair advantage over another in the student council elections, we made sure to put it that it’s prohibited in that amendment,” Detant said.
With the amendment comes reform regarding disciplinary action for violating these rules.
“The student council Senate decided that after the first infraction would be, you know, basically a warning. And then the second infraction be you’re disqualified from the election. So that’s something new that a lot of people wanted to make sure that all elections were fair,” Detant said.
Along with the Student Council Senate, the Homeroom Representatives had a say in the vote.
“Right now we’re voting on election requirements, and whether or not you have to hold a position before you run for a board position. It’s really important that the homeroom reps vote on things like this because they get to input an opinion from an outside of Student Council perspective. That way, they have opinions from all the classes that will influence the vote, to make it fair,” Senior and Vice President of Outreach Alastair Page said.
Every amendment that is written into the constitution affects the MPSH student body. When the rules are altered to bring more fairness, they will affect election results, which in turn affect the student body. It can also go as far as amendments for mental health advocation, to spread awareness and have MPSH officially recognize different topics.
“If we amended the Constitution and no one announced it or reported it or even cared, we could have put in there that presidents can expel any kid that they want who bothers them. So, it’s really important that students are informed and speak out to make sure that … it’s fair, because again, you don’t want someone who’s acting as your representative in a way that you don’t agree with,” Detant said.
The constitution covers all the aspects of MPSH’s Student Council, what they represent and how they take action in school. Amendments can be proposed by anyone, in and out of the Student Council, but all students must be aware and remain informed on the changes being made because it directly affects them as a student body. To stay informed on changes that are being made to the MPSH Student Council Constitution, click here.
