With the first semester full of rave-themed dances, a Cinnabon TGIF and hilarious spotlight videos, the Executive Student Council (StuCo) has been working to foster a fun and inclusive environment at Lick-Wilmerding High School. But one might wonder, what goes on behind the scenes?
Let’s take a look at LWHS’s Presidents, Téa Theodosopoulos ’26 and Taylor Koo ’26. These two seniors are the glue that holds StuCo together. While balancing weekly meetings with Head of School Raj Mundra, Dean of Students Raquel Oliva-Gomez, or Director of the Center for Civic Engagement Christine Godinez-Jackson, Theodosopoulos and Koo are tasked with making sure that community meeting Spotlight videos, schoolwide TGIFs and grade-level games are planned and ready. As advocates for the student body, Theodosopoulos and Koo recognize that it can be challenging to truly represent all LWHS students’ identities and needs while also respecting and understanding the guidelines and restrictions set by the administration. However, they reflect that the process of getting to know the student body and faculty staff has been endlessly rewarding. “This position has let me feel very in touch with the student body, in a way that I don’t think I could have without this position. And the faculty, gosh, I love working with the faculty, they are so kind,” Koo said. “I love that with this role, when people see me up there during community meetings, or hanging out on Mr. Mundra Mondays, they might, maybe, feel more comfortable approaching me.”
Vice Presidents (VPs) Joe Lu ’26 and Jonah Rucker ’26 have been working hard this semester, not only turning LWHS into a rave for the night on Howth, but also supporting their fellow StuCo members with planning Earth Week, making the haunted house and coordinating spirit week. Our VPs reflected on their experiences as a part of StuCo so far and shared that their favorite part has been creating events where students can have fun and take a step away from a locked-in school mindset. “My favorite part is interacting with the student body a lot. Being able to see students have fun because of something we created—it’s been really rewarding,” Lu said. However, they highlight that a challenge they face is pleasing everyone in the LWHS community while planning dances. “Even when sending out Google Forms for everyone at school choosing the most popular ideas, there were still many complaints for Howth,” Rucker said. To combat this, our VPs want to encourage more engagement with students to coordinate events everyone will enjoy, requesting LWHS students come up to them and give input on their ideas. “Y’all can talk to us and tell us what you want us to do. I’d love to have people come up to me in the halls or have people send me emails. It’s way more awful to hear that someone didn’t like something that we did when it could have been prevented if they just talked to us,” Lu said.
Now, let’s see how the Spirit Coordinators Lila Range ’26 and Ces Morrell ’26 keep the school alive with spirit and passion. The two seniors spend time prepping for grade-level games and fostering community between grade levels. “We really focus on making sure that all of our events are really including everyone,” Morrell said. And look out for their new spirit squad, coming soon! “We promised we would finally implement a spirit squad of students who will be participating on game days, and we’ve already gotten sign-ups and are planning our first meetings,” Range said.
As Student Inclusion Chairs, Gavin Cameron ’26 and Sanya Sohal ’26 have been focused on creating an inclusive community for all grade levels. Cameron reflected on what he enjoys most about working in student inclusion. “I really like how it feels like I have more influence on the things that I care about at Lick, and now I have the resources to do the things that Sanya and I care about,” Cameron said. This semester, the pair worked on planning a frosh belonging fair where frosh got to meet student club leaders and learn more about affinity groups at LWHS.
As LWHS’s Environmental Chairs, Sachin Datar ’27 and Riya Rawal ’27 have started carrying out their promise to promote environmental opportunities that different types of people can get involved in. The two have been working on various projects, including creating a community garden space near LWHS’s campus. “We have a project with the pocket park on Ocean Avenue, and we’re trying to turn it into a green space the community can enjoy. We’ve been collaborating with the Ocean Avenue Association, and it has been a really cool experience turning a not-so-desirable space into something everyone can use and enjoy,” Datar said. The pair have been committed to renewing an environmental opportunities document where people can find different internships and works relating to environmental work.
photo courtesy of Vidigami
Amelia Kearney ’27, Secretary, has been working diligently to keep StuCo organized and flowing smoothly, a job that includes taking notes during meetings, organizing meeting times and dates and managing a StuCo Instagram account. Recently, she had to work around an Instagram blacklisting. “Someone hacked [the StuCo] Instagram page and started selling cars. They think I’m the scammer, so my IP address is blocked,” Kearney said.
But it’s Athena Wolff ’26 and Ella Reddy ’26 who make the student body all double over laughing at community meetings with their videos. When they aren’t running around in a blow-up tiger costume or fulfilling one of their campaign promises, they are working to ideate, film and edit biweekly videos. While the two acknowledge that it can be hard to curate humor that appeals to everyone in the LWHS community, when done successfully, they find it to be the most rewarding part of their job. “Showing the videos and seeing everyone’s reactions, whether dying laughing or screaming from seeing their friends on screen, is so fun,” Wolff said.
Finally, as Treasurer, Frank Ouyang ’28 has been managing the school’s finances and making sure school events stay under budget. “I made a spreadsheet document that [has] the spending of every position, and it has helped the Presidents and I and Christy keep in mind how much we’ve spent,” Ouyang said. As the new semester approaches, Ouyang has been committed to finding ways to keep dance costs low.
So next time you have an idea for a community meeting game, an exciting spotlight or an upcoming dance, let StuCo know! They love hearing from the LWHS community, and are working every day to make sure students feel heard, have fun and create lasting memories.
