Council Membership Takes A Hit After Colleges No Longer Accept It As An Extracurricular

Dr. Linda Addante, Council’s Executive, walked into a nearly-empty auditorium last Wednesday during what should have been a Council meeting. Only the staff, community, and three freshmen representatives had bothered to show up. A note reading “WE QUIT” was taped to the table at the front of the room, where the Council Executive Committee typically sits.

It is likely that this bizarre scene is related to the damning announcement from the Association of American Colleges and Universities last week. The statement read: “Student government would no longer be accepted as an extracurricular activity on any college applications to four-year universities.” In a subsequent press release, the Association explained its decision: “We have found that participation in student government has become nearly a given as a part of applications for students who live in financially-stable and wealthy zip codes, or who attend private school. Meanwhile, students who come from more modest means, or who attend underfunded schools often do not have access to student leadership opportunities. We believe that this is a massive step forward in our continuing effort to root out systemic inequities in the college admissions process.” 

The statement caused chaos at the school as many students began to scramble to resign from Council and find another extracurricular activity that looks good on paper. A former Council representative spoke with The Broadside on condition of anonymity, saying, “I only did Council because I thought that colleges would find it impressive. Now that they will no longer accept it, I’m trying to find other things that will fill my CommonApp activities section.” 

The future of Council is in peril, and only time will tell how the school will progress from here.