Dan Wants Students To Be Active School Citizens

“I think students more than anything like to be treated more like adults not as children,” explained Kuranui Board of Trustees Student Representative Dan Carlisle. “They like being heard, listen to and considered as opposed to them saying something, people hearing it, but then nothing comes of it.”
 
Dan has just returned from a challenging three day Youth for Youth programme run by the YMCA at Camp Kaitoke. “The programme was centred on being an active citizen in our community. They asked questions about what it means to be an active participant in our community and what does a person like that look like?
 
“At first I was thinking it’s just someone that’s out there putting themselves forward, going out of their way to make a difference to the community and now I think that it’s more than that. It’s more about involving other people and helping other people to make the community a better place for everyone,” added Dan.
 
At this time of year, Kuranui Year 12 students traditionally put their names forward for Year 13 leadership roles such as Head Boy, Sports or Events Leader. The Youth for Youth programme offered the students the chance to examine their motives and develop their key leadership skills.
 
Dan has already taken up a very important role at the college as the student representative on the Board of Trustees and feels that the course has given him new ideas that he can bring forward.  “I think I’ll be in a good position to help give the student voice more sway,” he said. “I can try and promote more students to move forward and take a more positive role to become active citizens in the school community. I would love to try and get more students to get involved in the school, rather than them just coming here in the morning doing their work, eating lunch doing the rest of their work and going home again.”