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Students say Slack program expands leadership, college pathways
Summary
Students from the district's Student Leadership Advisory Council described how the "Slack" program builds leadership, connects pupils to college and career opportunities and produces a steady pipeline of student board candidates; the board heard the students' video and elected student board members for next year.
San Bernardino City Unified School District students told the board May 19 that the Student Leadership Advisory Council, known as Slack, gives members speaker experience, field trips and pathways into higher education and student governance.
At a presentation led by district staff, 11th grader Salem Rios said Slack lets students "get involved" by collaborating with peers from other schools and working on community projects. Several student speakers — including Alicia Ror, Isaiah Torres and others from middle and high schools across the district — described field trips (Pepperdine University, a law conference), scholarship notices and hands‑on leadership training they said they would not have had otherwise.
The students emphasized Slack's recruitment role: members are encouraged to recruit peers and then return to their home campuses to share information. "Slack serves as a pipeline allowing people like myself that just became a student board member to apply and become one," Salem Rios said during the presentation.
Why it matters: Student presenters said Slack helps students find career and college pathways and develop public‑speaking and civic skills. Student board members said the program also helps produce student board candidates; the presenters announced newly elected student board members for the coming year.
What they told the board: Students recounted specific opportunities they credited to Slack, including dual‑enrollment experiences and scholarship outreach. Several said the program broadened their ambitions; one said Slack led to an invitation to a Washington, D.C., trip. A short video produced by a high‑school film group accompanied the remarks.
Next steps and context: District staff thanked the Slack advisors and encouraged other students to apply. Board members and staff said they would continue supporting the program and integrating student leadership into district pathways. The Slack presentation was followed by other agenda items including routine resolutions and public comments.
Ending: The board recognized the students for their presentation and noted new student board member elections announced at the meeting.
