Students will have a voice at the board table. 

Jennifer Rajesh was appointed student board of education representative in April. The student board representative position was created as part of a new district focus on student voice. 

An application for the position was sent out to all students in early spring 2023. Rajesh’s main reason for deciding to apply for the position was her interest in and passion for education.

“I really look forward to teaching kids and I know with this position I could learn more about what goes on behind the scenes when it comes to education,” Rajesh said. “I think we oftentimes think it’s just the principals and counselors and teachers and then we just call it a day, but there’s actually a lot of different people behind it. What I was really interested in was learning more about that process and how we make change around the school, regarding education for the students.”

Rajesh’s main duty is to present a report at each Board of Education meeting, highlighting the month’s key events throughout the district. 

“For the most part, I want it to be a place where students can connect and also share their opinions with the board,” Rajesh said. “I’ve been working on getting feedback with the students at the high school. Mr. Mainka, the superintendent, has these advisory boards which I plan to sit in on for Meadows, the middle school, and the high school. I’ve taken the initiative and decided to do my own for the elementary schools. With these advisory boards, we can work to get more feedback around the school on things students really enjoy or things they’re willing to change. I think it’s gonna be like a process to see what that feedback is and what I can make out of that feedback.”

Rajesh is still adjusting to her position but has high hopes.

“It’s this wild process of figuring out what the student board rep exactly means. I’ve worked with the superintendent and it’s been kind of a process. We haven’t had one in the past 10 years so I really have to set that precedent,” Rajesh said. “I would say it’s been a learning process and I’m really looking forward to educating the new student board on this whole process, and hopefully making sure that this position expands to what it already is now.”

In addition to her passion for education, Rajesh has a large interest in coding and computer programming. She is currently attending OSTC for computer programming and is president of Girls who Code, an organization that promotes closing the gender gap that currently exists  in STEM. She is also co-president of Interact club, a volunteering organization that aims to connect Novi students with their community. In addition, she tutors kids at the Coder School in Plymouth. Looking to the future, Rajesh says she wants to attend a four-year university to dual major in education and computer science.

“I think we can really make education into something more than it is right now. I’m still trying to figure out my career though, with both majors, because they seem on two different spectrums, so I think that’ll be later on down the road,” Rajesh said.

For those interested, Board of Education meetings are held at the Educational Services Building. The schedule for meetings can be found online: https://www.novi.k12.mi.us/district/board-meeting-schedule. 

Check the November edition of Novi Today magazine for a printed version of this article.