Beech Hill School’s Student Council is a group of students who care about culture and community and want to serve in an important leadership role.  Members of Student Council strive to consistently demonstrate their school’s four core values: respect, responsibility, caring, and honesty.  They exhibit positive attitudes, work with others, and possess the desire to make Beech Hill School and the community a better place for all.

Students are not turned away from membership in the school’s Student Council. There is no election process, and interested students may join at the start of each trimester. School staff identify and build on the strengths of any 4-8th grade leader.

Student Council students will do anything to help out!  Their typical responsibilities include leading daily morning announcements, helping younger students in the lunchroom, organizing spirit weeks, facilitating monthly spirit day assemblies, planning service learning projects, fundraising, and designing ways to encourage social/emotional wellness. Students are especially focused on activities that increase diversity awareness and promote inclusion.

Beech Hill School Student Council members are also ambassadors of school spirit.  School spirit can become the difference between just being at a school and being at their school. Showing school spirit demonstrates a passion that is immeasurable and contagious and sets the tones for other aspects of Beech Hill School.

The last Tuesday of every month is designated as School Spirit Day. On these days, students and staff are invited to wear school colors and/or their favorite Beech Hill School gear to show their school pride.  Student Council holds an assembly on each School Spirit Day for activities like promoting a message or event, showcasing a talent, recognizing a team and/or appreciating the work of an individual or group. During this time, they also celebrate birthdays of the month and hold a “green card” prize drawing. Green cards are awarded to individual students for demonstrating their school values throughout the school day.

The fundraisers that Student Council members host throughout the school year fund projects and/or initiatives, including (but not limited to) the BHS High School Scholarship Fund,  BHS School Spirit Day Carnival, SPCA of Hancock County, Walmart Giving Tree, and Emmaus (Ellsworth) Homeless Shelter. Fundraisers include game concessions, Read-a-thons, family movie nights, and other events that connect people in the community.

This story was submitted by Beech Hill School as part of the Maine Schools Sharing Success Campaign. To submit at story or an idea, email rachel.paling@maine.gov.