PJP’s Student Council has recently proved their extraordinary planning, decorating, and preparation skills after an enjoyable Homecoming week. Because students were unable to experience a Homecoming dance last year due to COVID limitations, a week of fun and celebration was appreciated by many students. In addition, Student Council does a substantial amount of behind-the-scenes planning to ensure that other events such as pep rallies, extracurricular events, and fundraisers are successful. Moderator, Mr. Puntila, and officers Avery Dunbar, Patrick Whitehouse, and Ariana Caruso recently participated in an interview to give additional insight into the activities that Student Council plays a vital role in.
Since all students in grades 8-12 have the opportunity to become a member of Student Council, Mr. Puntila, who has served as the moderator of Student Council for the past 4 years, intends to continue allowing Student Council to be “student-driven… that way students can give all the input to make their year the best year they can have.” Although he, along with Ms. Whittington, act as moderators to the club, they try to remain “as hands-off as possible” to allow the students to suggest their own ideas about how to make the school year as enjoyable as possible. “At the end of the day, this is the students’ school year and not our own.” Avery, Patrick, and Ariana all point out that Student Council meets weekly, planning upcoming pep rallies and proposing various ideas to create a lively and engaging event. Seniors Avery and Patrick, both members of Student Council for 2 years and current Senior Class President and Executive Board President, respectively, enjoy the community and school-wide involvement. Patrick adds that his participation in Student Council is “all for the betterment of the students”. Ariana, a 2-year member of Student Council and present Junior Class Historian, appreciates the opportunity to represent her class. She “takes into consideration what other people in [her] class would want too”. Furthermore, Mr. Puntila, Avery, Patrick, and Ariana all believe that this year’s Homecoming week was the most memorable event that Student Council has planned thus far. Avery mentions that “many students liked the setup” and that she did not hear many complaints about Homecoming week this year, leading her to believe that this was one of the most successful Homecoming weeks yet. Patrick felt that “it seemed like everyone had fun”. Ariana believes that this year’s dance “was the best homecoming that we’ve had since I’ve been at Pope” (4 years?), in part due to the photo booth and the decorations. She said the photo booth made the dance “more exciting” because “it brought something new”, and the decorations accurately represented the time travel theme, most notably through the time travel entrance door which imitated a time machine. “Homecoming is a big deal for a lot of people because you only get a few homecoming dances, so we want to make that the most fun for everyone”. The members of Student Council hope to continue advancing the program in various ways. Avery wishes to “create new school-wide traditions” such as having pep rallies that are specific to one sport. Patrick would like to “leave a legacy” at PJP so that others “have something to remember our class by and the year we had”. Ariana wants “to continue to improve the homecoming dances” because she knows how special they are for many students. Mr. Puntila hopes to attend public conventions where “student councils from other schools get to come together and talk about Student Council” to share ideas and past successful events. Thank you to all the members of Student Council for the hard work, dedication, and passion you put forth to benefit our school!