Students may apply to be Senior Class Cabinet members in the spring of their junior year. Photo illustration generated by Google Gemini.
When you are at prom and the lights are glimmering, have you ever wondered who planned it all? It is Senior Class Cabinet.
According to sponsor Courtney Runge, Senior Class Cabinet is an organization of a select group of seniors who represent all seniors. To be selected for the cabinet, students must meet certain criteria such as having good attendance, good grades, no suspensions and want to represent their senior class.
Senior Class Cabinet meets before school with Runge at least once a month. Runge said when they meet, the seniors are given free range to plan and organize events and will hold fundraisers if needed.
“Our focus is to give a voice to the senior class,” Runge said. “The organization was also created in order to meet diverse people and to make ever-lasting memories.”
Runge added that she thinks it’s a fun way to have a voice because students have one year of school left, and it allows them to be inspired, responsible and brings them together for common events.
One of the biggest events the cabinet organizes is prom. In fact, Senior Class Cabinet members are the ones who brainstorm and vote for the prom theme.
Runge said that Senior Class Cabinet members brainstorm themes and usually come up with quite a lengthy list of up to 30 ideas per year. Members narrow the list down and respectfully eliminate the least popular theme. Sometimes members are able to choose the final theme through discussion while other times they let the senior class vote on the theme. After they choose the theme, they get together and decide when they will plan prom.
Another event they organize is Senior Sunrise. Senior Sunrise is a concept from social media. Runge said that “at this event, students bring blankets, items like soccer balls, footballs, photo props, etc., and they sit and watch the sunrise together.”
At the Senior Sunrise, members also sell donuts, water and juice. Senior Sunrise is held in the fall at Collin Stadium. As the years go on, more and more seniors attend to watch the sunrise, she said.
To become a part of Senior Class Cabinet, students apply when they are juniors. Runge said “when they apply, what I look for is someone who can take charge and isn’t afraid to take ownership and be a leader.”
Other standards the students must meet are fine attendance, good grades and good behavior. Sometimes elections are held if there are more than 15 students running. If voting is needed, voting takes place through a Microsoft Forms link.
The juniors who are accepted into Senior Class Cabinet for the next school year help out at graduation for the seniors.
Runge states that juniors will help set up for the graduation ceremony. They’ll set out diploma covers and programs as well as remind seniors to label their caps.
“During the ceremony, they will help lead the seniors in and out of the arena, and they will also usher them out of their seats as they go up to receive their diplomas,” Runge said. After the ceremony, the juniors will collect caps and take them back to the practice arena for the graduates to pick up. Only five juniors take part in graduation.
“I usually ask for volunteers first as as the juniors have to attend rehearsal and the actual ceremony,” Runge said. If students agree to help, she said she usually takes the first five volunteers.