During its regular meeting on March 9, 2020, the Westerville City School District (WCSD) Board of Education presented recognition certificates to those students and recent graduates who comprised the inaugural Westerville Student Education Foundation (WSEF).
Founded in February 2019 as a student-led initiative of the Westerville Education Foundation (WEF), WSEF members and former members recognized by the Board of Education include Westerville Central High School’s (WCHS) Anna Borders, as well as recent WCHS graduates Gabriela Alvarez Narvaez and Payton McCarthy; Westerville North High School’s (WNHS) Samuel Haga and Jaiden Stokes; and Westerville South High School’s (WSHS) David Bistriceanu, Cassandra Cotter, Audrey Jones, and Anthony Vilardo. Representatives from this group also updated Board of Education members on recent WSEF activities and accomplishments.
Both the WEF and WSEF are registered non-profit organizations. WSEF gives district students the opportunity and resources to take the ideas they have for improving their schools and community and turn them into action and impact. The WSEF has a competitive grant process for student-led projects, with financial oversight from the WEF. The WSEF also provides opportunities for students to connect with district and community leaders to explore, refine and implement their programs.
Several students who recently were interviewed and selected to serve on the 2020-21 WSEF also were in attendance to support their peers. All but one of the current WSEF students are graduating seniors. South’s Audry Jones, who is a junior, will continue her WSEF involvement next year and be joined by other student leaders, including Muheeb Hijazeen and Kiah Smith (WCHS); Jake Gooding and Colleen Lynch (WNHS); and Mattie Cotter, Alia O'Brien, and Diana Atieh (WSHS).