On Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, the CHS forum council (FOCO) candidates visited forums and discussed their future agendas with CHS students. Scholars learned more about their leadership styles and priorities, asked questions and engaged in discussions with the candidates.
“I would like people to at least see my viewpoint of what would make CHS better,” said Oliver Jacobson, a FOCO vice president candidate. “I would like to get people to know who I am, convince them to vote for me, even if not I am their first choice, but is their second.”
The FOCO election will take place on Feb. 20, 2025. Each CHS student has one vote, and the candidate with the most votes will be elected.
Jacobson believes that sharing your opinion is crucial to his campaign. He thinks that being able to connect with the student body at CHS is an essential skill for being a candidate.
“You want forum council leaders who are familiar with the student body and can connect with them,” Jacobson said. “So if a potential forum council leader can’t do that, then that’s a big flaw.”
Forum visits give insight into the candidates’ personalities and their policies. In past years, it has been a tradition for candidates to visit different forums.
“I thought some of them were really genuine and cool,” said Nic Villamor, a FOCO presidential candidate, reflecting on last year’s speeches. “They made me want to vote for them more. The ones that were less genuine made me not want to vote for them as much.”
There will be a town hall debate on Feb. 12 featuring all the candidates running for FOCO president and vice presidents. Forum visits provide a platform for candidates to share their policies.
“You can get feedback from all forums together,” said Ryan Silverster, CHS teacher and FOCO supervisor. “So I think it’s a cool first step. Then, with the town hall tomorrow, that’s kind of going to be their big platform day.”
FOCO president candidates overview:
Alex Smith and Andrew Rook,running under the slogan “Caped in courage, powered by purpose,” center their campaign around the S.U.P.E.R. agenda. Student-focused: All students should have appealing opportunities to shape their Community High School experience. Unity: Foster community through more school-wide activities. Perspective: Prioritize feedback to reflect student priorities. Efficiency: continue to uphold FOCO’s current efficiency. Responsibility: Expand the current FOCO representatives’ responsibilities.
Mallory Towers and Piper Cooke, have 2 years of forum council experience and leadership roles across a range of extracurriculars. Their campaign and future policy are oriented around their WAVE plan: Welcoming every voice, Advocating for your needs, Valuing our traditions, and Engaging our community.
Nic Villamor, running under the slogan “Bringing Experience, Empathy and Innovation to Community High.” Villamore centers his campaign on inclusivity, representation and protecting CHS programs. Inclusivity: advice for the installation of a second gender-neutral restroom and menstrual products for all bathrooms. Representation: ensuring that underclassmen’s vices can be heard. Protection CHS programs: Protecting programs like jazz, journalism, CET and mock trial.
FOCO vice president candidates overview:
Oliver Jacobson centers his campaign on Repeat, Refining and Rework. He plans to replicate past successes in the Forum Council, actively seeking student feedback and creating more welcoming events to strengthen community bonds. His background includes leadership and collaboration across various extracurriculars. Jacobson also mentioned his background dual enrollment experience, equipping him with the skills to utilize CHS’s resources.
Autumn Klus-Salisbury centers her campaign around Change, Community and Communication. Salisbury focuses on learning from past experiences while on what’s working. As a member of the Forum Council since sophomore year and co-president of both the Feminist Club and QSA, Sailsbury plans to expand more opportunities and ways for students to give feedback.
Ava Griffith hopes to plan more school-wide events while staying active in NHS, journalism and other extracurriculars outside of the CHS community. Griffith wants FOCO to be more engaged with forums. She, also drawing from her experience in activities at other schools, hopes to connect with students who share similar backgrounds.
Sophia Alcumbrack McDaniel aims to adjust the FOCO clarity based on the entire student body feedback, improve middle school outreach, and push CHS engagement and student involvement. Additionally, McDaniel plans to expand school-wide and grade-focused activities.
As the town hall debate is coming up on Feb. 12, candidates will have the chance to further discuss their agendas with students. The voting will take place in forums on Feb. 20. The result will be announced shortly after.
For detailed information regarding the candidate’s campaign, please visit: Link
