Student board representatives outline plans for student feedback app and email to bring student voice to North Rose-Wolcott board

Lena Strangelo, the student board of education representative for Nova High School, and fellow student representative Marcus Hafner told the North Rose-Wolcott Central School District Board of Education that they are working to broaden how students share concerns with the board.

"Hi, my name is Lena Strangelo. I'm the student board of education representative for Nova High School," Strangelo said, describing her role as a senior and class president who wants to make sure "the student voice is heard and [students] feel included." Marcus Hafner, also a senior and student board representative, said he has been active in class officer roles and on the district committee that produced the strategic action plan.

The pair said they have established an email channel so students can submit questions or concerns and have those items passed along to board members for discussion. "We're the first students that have started this," Hafner said, adding the goal is to create a reliable route for students to raise issues and see them considered by the board.

They also described developing a feedback app intended to give students a direct way to provide input. "We're trying to get some work going on an app we think will be very beneficial that will give us firsthand feedback through the students," Hafner said. The transcript did not specify the app's name, launch date or the email address students should use.

Both students emphasized that their experience attending leadership conferences and sitting in on district forums has helped them understand how the board approaches capital projects and other executive decisions, while also noting that some topics—handled in executive session—are not open to student participation.

Strangelo said the student representative role is intended to model participation for future student reps and to grow responsibilities over time. She described post-graduation plans: "After graduation, I will be serving a 2-year mission and I will be in Auckland, New Zealand for those two years. . . . And I'm I will be going [to Brigham Young University] hopefully in the fall of 2028," language she used in the meeting. Hafner said he plans to pursue public policy and political science on a law track but has not selected a college.

The students framed their work as both practical and aspirational, noting the advantages of a smaller district where students can serve in multiple activities and leadership roles. They said they hope the student representative position will continue to expand and help future students advocate for peers.

The board did not take any formal action on the students' initiatives during the recorded segments. The email address for student submissions and the app's rollout details were not specified in the transcript.