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Mission Statement

The mission of Salamanca Student Government is to provide students the opportunity to participate in a decision making government structure within the High school.

What is Salamanca High School Student Government?

Salamanca High School Student Government (SSG) is made up of three groups; the student body, the General Assembly (GA), and the Cabinet. The GA and the Cabinet will represent the entire student body and operate in a democratic fashion to make decisions that will impact the entire school. Examples of decisions the SSG will make are how to improve the code of conduct, with potential changes to such things as the dress code, tardy consequences, lunch privileges, cell phone policy, etc. Other decisions might be situational, like shutting down a bathroom or what rewards students should receive for accomplishing school initiatives.

The goal is to have a body with a minimum of 20 students and a maximum of 30 students from the Salamanca High School who will be elected by natural groups within the school to form a GA. The students who are elected into the GA will become the SSG. Once the GA is formed, it will elect a President, Vice President, and 3 or 5 additional students to create the Cabinet. The GA will maintain an odd number so that there is never an even number of votes.

How is the Student Government formed and what power does each group have?

It is well known that the Salamanca High School is populated with a dynamic and diverse student body. There are a wide range of talents, interests, extracurricular activities, personalities, etc. that exist within the school. People typically associate with those they share common interests with and because of this, natural groups are formed within the school.

Student Groups – A student group consists of 10 to 30 students who share a common interest. For example, there are the gamers, football players, soccer players, GSA, bookworms, band/chorus, NHS, class clowns, etc. Once students identify a group of peers they align with, they will form that group, come up with an appropriate name, and then elect a representative for the General Assembly (GA). The elected representative will present any school issues from their student group to the GA. All elected representatives are expected to attend all GA meetings.

How to form a student group:

• Step 1 – Find at least 10 people you have common interests with.

• Step 2 – Pick up a Student Group Form and fill it out.

• Step 3 – Turn in your Student Group Form to Mrs. Canale or Mr. Meyers for approval.

• Step 4 – Once your student group is approved, elect a representative and an alternate representative.

• Step 5 – Submit Student Group Form with elected General Assembly member to either Mrs. Canale or Mr. Meyers.

General Assembly – The General Assembly (GA) is made up of one representative from each student group. In GA meetings, representatives communicate issues or concerns identified by their student groups. These issues are then solved by either the entire GA or small groups within the GA.

How it is Formed – Each Student Group elects one member to represent them in the General Assembly.

Power of General Assembly – General Assembly members elect the Cabinet representatives. GA members will create solutions to school wide issues. General Assembly members will vote to ratify or deny these proposals. All proposals must receive a 2/3rds vote to be ratified.

Cabinet – The Cabinet includes a President, Vice President, and 3 or 5 other General Assembly members. Members of the GA will campaign for these positions.

How it is Formed- The Cabinet consists of 5 or 7 members who have been elected by the GA.

Power of Cabinet – Each proposal that is ratified by the GA will be voted on a second time by the Cabinet where said proposal will be approved or vetoed. This second vote is decided by the majority.

How do students take action to make changes they see fit apply to the school?

• Step 1: Any student can begin the process to make school wide changes! Each individual student, or even multiple students, will be able to pass their idea(s) to their representative who is in the GA.

• Step 2: Your group representative proposes an idea to GA. At this time, student group members may attend the meeting to help their representative propose the idea to the GA.

• Step 3: Once the idea has been presented to the GA, members can branch off into small groups or work together in a large group to develop the best plan of action to incorporate the new idea into the school.

• Step 4: Possible plans are presented to the entire GA.

• Step 5: GA votes to adopt or reject the presented plans. (2/3rds vote)

• Step 6: Cabinet approves or vetoes the plan. (majority vote)

• Step 7: If approved, the plan is presented to administration and then the school board.

• Step 8: If approved, new plan goes into effect.

What will be expected of me if I am in SSG?

All group representatives will meet during the school day. It is expected that all members attend if present at school that day. If recurring attendance becomes a problem, the SSG advisors reserve the right to address the attendance problem which may result in dismissal from SSG. In this case, the alternate representative from that student group would then attend the GA meetings as their student group representative.

Am I allowed to change my group over the course of the school year?

You make only make one group change per year, and you cannot change back once the move is made. In order to move, you must first have approval from the group you want to join and the “change group” form must be signed by that group’s GA representative. Next, you must get approval from the group you want to leave and have the same “change group” form signed by your former group’s GA representative.