Charles County student-member-of-the-board candidates emphasize communication, mental-health access and alternatives to suspension at town hall

Brendan Ring, president of the Charles County Associations of Student Council, hosted a student town hall where two candidates for the Charles County Public Schools student member of the board laid out competing priorities and proposals to improve communication, mental-health access and school discipline.

Abhijit Mond, a candidate from Northpointe High School, said a top priority is fixing a “lack of communication to students” about existing resources. “We spend so much money, so much time on all these resources from the Hazel Health to the Apex Learning free tutoring SAT,” Mond said, adding that many students do not know those resources exist. He proposed a “small monthly minute” — modeled on practices in neighboring counties — to deliver board updates directly to classrooms and to reconstitute the advisory council with broader school representation.

Lunachi Abanala, a candidate from La Plata High School, described a suite of outreach tools aimed at students without reliable home internet and proposed a monthly program called “Unmuted” to gather input countywide. “I know not everybody has proper access to technology when they get home,” Abanala said. The candidate said Unmuted would be distributed through Synergy and include monthly meetings designed to collect concerns from middle and high school students.

Both candidates made mental health a central issue. Mond called for reducing stigma around counseling and said students treat required health classes as a checkbox; he argued for more meaningful, curriculum-linked engagement so students “realize that we have resources.” Abanala said some students avoid counselors out of fear that visits will not remain confidential and described plans to strengthen confidentiality and triage before immediate interventions. “Sometimes a student just needs someone to listen to them,” Abanala said.

On school safety and behavior, the candidates differed in emphasis but agreed that suspension should not be the default response. Mond said he favors early identification and prevention: rather than immediately suspending students, he argued for recognizing warning signs such as falling grades or in-class incidents and intervening earlier. Abanala advocated expanding restorative justice practices and a no-contact approach in certain cases, saying suspension alone often fails to change conduct. “I really wanna focus on a restorative justice program rather than just suspensions for students,” Abanala said, adding that genuine apologies and understanding can promote long-term change.

Abanala also outlined a broader “Protect Ed” initiative to address harassment, homelessness and rising student suicide rates, and flagged physical building security — such as consistently locked exterior doors — as an area for improvement. Mond said he does not support “over-policing” in schools and reiterated a focus on preventive supports rather than additional officers.

Both candidates addressed bullying and discipline. Abanala emphasized restorative processes and the possibility of mediated apologies when victims are comfortable; Mond said teachers must recognize and document bullying earlier and described a personal middle-school incident to underline the need for better adult intervention.

On student engagement and staffing, Mond proposed appointing a representative from every middle and high school to the SMOB team so that every school has a direct voice in policy work. Abanala said any staff she hires would be expected to contribute actively, and she stressed listening to multiple perspectives.

The candidates repeatedly returned to specific resources they said need better promotion: Hazel Health (telehealth/therapy), Apex Learning and free tutoring programs. Mond cited the scale of the constituency he seeks to represent when describing the role’s reach: “you’re not representing yourself, but you’re representing all 27,000 of us,” he said.

The town hall gave students a chance to compare platforms on communication, mental-health policy, school safety and student engagement, and both candidates emphasized outreach to middle-schoolers through advisory councils or monthly programs. No formal action or vote took place; the event served as a forum for the two candidates to explain plans if elected student member of the board.

The town hall concluded with closing remarks from Ring and brief final comments from each candidate.