State School Superintendent Richard Woods has selected 66 Georgia high-school students to serve on his 2021-2022 Student Advisory Council, including 12 from schools located in North Georgia.
"Year after year, my Student Advisory Council is an invaluable resource as I make decisions that impact students across the state," Woods said in a media statement released Friday. “Getting to know these students and seeking their feedback and perspectives allows all of us at the Georgia Department of Education to make the best possible policy choices.”
Throughout the year, the students will meet with Woods to discuss the impact of state policies in the classroom.
The council includes representation from all regions of the state – at least four students from every Regional Educational Service Agency (RESA) district in Georgia were selected. Members were selected from a pool of more than 1,000 applicants who applied to serve on the council; this year, students in grades 10-12 were eligible to apply. Applications were reviewed and scored by a panel of GaDOE staff members, and students were chosen based on the strength of their essay answers, which focused on their ideas for public education.
To be eligible for the council, students must be enrolled in a Georgia public high school (including charter schools) for the 2021-2022 school year. Virtual learning students are still considered enrolled.
The 12 students who will serve on the 2021-2022 council are:
Banks County
- Ariel Heredia from Banks County High School
Dawson County
- Piper Duncan from Dawson County High School
Forsyth County
- Akhila Kothapalli from Denmark High School
- Simran Gupta from Alliance Academy for Innovation
- Vinayak Menon from Lambert High School
Gwinnett County
- Eden Melka from Brookwood High School
Habersham County
- Molly Butler from Habersham Central High School
- Juan Borge Osorio from Habersham Central High School
Hart County
- Franics Hoang from Hart County High School
Jackson County
- Morgan Byers from East Jackson Comprehensive High School
Jefferson City
- Emily Puckett from Jefferson High School
Pickens County
- Piper Duncan from Pickens County High School
