On Friday, Oct. 27, Walpole High School (WHS) hosted the Southeastern Associations of Student Council (SEMASC) conference. This was a Boston Sports team themed day-long event where STUCO (Student Council) students from 20 to 30 different schools came to WHS to participate in the team building workshops the school offered.
Each year there are three SEMASC conferences throughout various Massachusetts high schools. Friday held the Fall conference, the first of the three meetings. Students came together to learn how to work off of each other through different interactive workshops led by other STUCO members. This is done in order to bring all towns together in preparation for the final conference of the year, the Massachusetts Association of Student Council (MASC) conference which involves the entire state where at least 100 schools participate.
The day started out with all the students hanging out in the gym and began with the opening sessions and introduction speeches as well as a dance party and a “get to know you” bingo game. They then transitioned into their workshops, each 30 minutes long, where they worked on team bonding and leadership. For example, “building a tower of leadership” involved groups of two to three people having to make a tower out of toothpicks and marshmallows. At the end, they discussed how in STUCO things can go wrong, just like trying to make a tower out of these materials, but the most crucial thing is being able to work together with different approaches until it ultimately succeeds.
One of the most influential parts of SEMASC is the community created through STUCO and the drive and motive these students have to change their schools and communities for the better.
“I fell in love with it immediately and have been with it ever since” SEMASC President, Avery Burke, said when explaining her STUCO career.
The SEMASC event was filled with lots of team building, inspiring each other, fun filled workshops and held a very clear great sense of community throughout the whole day.
