Harford County Regional Association of Student Councils Unanimously Supports Partial Voting Rights for Student Representative on Harford County Board of Education

From the Harford County Regional Association of Student Councils’ Student Voting Rights Task Force:

The Harford County Regional Association of Student Councils unanimously supports partial voting rights for the Student Representative on the Harford County Board of Education. Partial student voting rights ensure that student representation is applied to the policies and decisions made by the Board of Education but limit this application of student representation to content appropriate for the student vote. The partial student vote of the Student Representative on the Harford County Board of Education would increase the number of voting members on the Board of Education from nine to ten, allotting ten percent of the Board of Education’s vote to student representation but restricting the student vote from breaking a tie.

A partial student vote factors the voice of Harford County Public School students into Board decisions and policies, expressing the value the Harford County Board of Education places upon the interests and needs of the students it serves. A partial student vote not only considers the student voice but implements the student voice. Implementation of the student voice through partial student voting rights provides Harford County Public School students with applied representation and empowers them to actively engage their education. Partial student voting rights mutually benefit the Board of Education and Harford County Public School students by creating policies and making decisions that correspond to student interests and needs. Partial voting rights for the Student Representative on the Harford County Board of Education will help the Board of Education to better serve the students of Harford County Public Schools.