School board service is one of the most overlooked public offices in America. School boards make decisions ranging from how much our teachers get paid to whether students must wear uniforms. They oversee massive budgets and employ superintendents to oversee their priorities and goals. They even decide what time students start school.
Right now, there’s a massive effort in America to politicize school boards with polarizing efforts, from banning books to banning pride flags and limiting the rights of LGBTQ+ students. Yet, for far too long, students have been left out of decision-making conversations, even though our voices are needed more than ever, and our perspectives are vital for fostering inclusive and effective governance.
But running for a school board as a young person is not an easy task. You face a lot of questions: Are you qualified? What life experiences do you bring to the table? I had to answer these questions when I ran to become the youngest elected official in Arizona last year, and now I have some answers.
My qualifications? I am a student affected by every school board decision made. Experience? I have a closer view of the effects of school board decisions than most school board members.
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I ran for the Littleton Elementary School District governing board while I was 17, and was elected while finishing out my senior year of high school. I advocated for clean energy, health services and ensuring that teachers and staff are supported, and I pushed for policies that support teacher retention.
Since being elected, I have completed several fellowships, along with professional development training to enhance my knowledge as a board member. I have also advocated for making sure that our district is a safe and welcoming environment for students and for the people we employ.
I’ve voted to establish longevity pay for our staff, provide attendance bonuses for our bus drivers and open a new dual-language school. I will keep pushing for these crucial improvements, as well as for establishing student representatives on the board to ensure students have a direct voice in policies that affect them, like reforming our code of conduct, disciplinary and dress code policies to allow students to fully express themselves.
Aside from my own experiences,I want to mention otheryoung people who are reshaping policies and decision-making by serving on school boards throughout the U.S.
- Armando Montero, an advocate for mental health, began running for the Tempe Union High School District Governing Board in Arizona when he was still in high school and was elected in 2020. He then worked to pass a new mental health policy and improve student-to-counselor ratios and became president of the governing board in 2023.
- Shiva Rajbhandari was elected to the Boise School District Board of Trustees in 2022 while still a senior in high school. He is an advocate for mental health services, a Green New Deal for public schools and better working conditions andsupport for staff.
- Danny Cage was elected to the Multnomah Education Service District Board of Directors in Oregon in 2023 at the age of 18 while still a senior in high school. He is an advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, climate activism and his local teachers union.
- Nicholas Scotti was elected in 2021, at age 19, to the Nutley Board of Education in New Jersey. He is an advocate for students and teachers and for better school food and infrastructure.
- Hunter Holt was elected, at age 18, to the Marana Unified School District Governing Board in Arizona in 2020. Hunter is advocating for an open and transparent process to ensure that educators have the support they need for the district’s students.
Young people stepping up to run for office right now include Mikah Dyer, a high school senior running for the Peoria Unified School District Governing Board in Arizona. He is an advocate for making sure that students, teachers and support staff have the resources they need, and is pushing for transparency in the school district’s budget process.
Carly Bryant is running for a spot on the Bozeman Independent School District Board of Trustees in Montana. She is a high school senior running on a platform of reimagining how school districts can tackle the climate crisis and create an inclusive culture for all students, staff and parents. She’s also an advocate for the Green New Deal for public schools.
Related: OPINION: Why school boards can and must be leaders in tackling climate change
These students are inspirational because they share the experiences not of yesterday, but of today. They have turned those experiences into action by running for office and transforming the way we think about empowering students by being that change themselves.
They are just a few examples of young people stepping into their collective power to create change in school boards and in public school systems throughout America, while encouraging more students to do the same.
They are fighting for climate action, LGBTQ+ rights and ensuring that staff have the resources they need, along with reforming mental health and discipline policies and much more. Students deserve a seat on every school board in America.
In Littleton, I remain inspired by every student in my community and district. If it weren’t for them, and if it weren’t for Sara Sanchez, my special education teacher in high school, and my political mentor, Leezah Sun, I wouldn’t be where I am right now.
Markus Ceniceros is the youngest elected official in Arizona and a member of the Littleton Elementary School District Governing Board. He attends Estrella Mountain Community College.
This story about students and school boards was produced by The Hechinger Report, a nonprofit, independent news organization focused on inequality and innovation in education. Sign up for Hechinger’s newsletter.
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