Sports Buyouts
Sports buyouts were an initiative that took place at Mackenzie in the past and was a great success. I would like to bring back the sports buyouts that had been shown with great interest by the student body in the past. In the sports buyout, students can choose to purchase a ticket to watch and cheer for a sports team during school. In past years, buyouts were only done for school sports, but I'd like to do them for professional sports. I will first gauge students' interests in the Raptors 905 (basketball), Toronto Marlies (hockey), or Blue Jays (baseball) so that everyone's voice is heard! Having a buyout for a professional sports game would be exhilarating and overall an eventful experience for everyone. This buyout would be very beneficial since it raises school spirit, and is an opportunity for the younger grades to socialize. Before leaving the school to attend the sporting event, packaged snacks could be sold with all profits being donated to SickKids Hospital. Through this charitable donation, we not only help out the local community but also increase the school's morale.
Leadership Workshop
I would like to implement a leadership workshop through benevolent organizations such as the “Believe Initiative'' organization. Currently planned, this workshop would focus more on the junior grades but can be expanded for all grades depending on the interest shown. I will take initiative to establish a chapter at our school to organize the Believe Leadership Course. This course works toward teaching students leadership, entrepreneurship, and mental wellness skills, which are undoubtedly important and valuable skills for all Grade 9 and 10 students. This course has seven lessons, and throughout this course, each student would be working on their passion project, which aims to solve a real-world problem. After the seven sessions, students can share their projects among the chapter, and later there’d be a Collective Inspiration Fair among all the other chapters. Through the Believe initiative program, you will have exposure to working with other motivated students. It is a good opportunity for you to meet new people with possibly similar interests. It helps you gain valuable leadership skills and also enables you to overcome potential obstacles restricting you from achieving your full potential.
Bringing Back Semis
Semi-Formals are a fun and exciting event for the whole school to take part in! I'd like to bring back semi-formals next year, especially for the juniors since this would be a great event for them to meet new people, while also having fun dancing/socializing with their friends. Semi-Formals are always memorable since you get to dress up according to the theme and have fun with your friends for the day. My unique Semi-Formal plan has a philanthropic benefit to it. For admission to the Semi-Formal, you could either pay for tickets as usual or donate 2 non-perishable food items! All food donations will be donated to the North York Harvest Food Bank. As well, all tickets and food donation submissions would be put into a raffle for a gift card! This event is something everyone looks forward to during the school year, and I will make it as memorable and eventful as possible next year. This event will for sure be one long-remembered due to its lively nature and charitable impact.
Pathway Fairs
I would also like to implement Pathway fairs with experienced guest speakers. I know that many students in Grade 9 tend to be a bit unsure about the pathway opportunities available to them. Sometimes it’s a tad intimidating to discuss future career plans. Therefore, introducing you to different career opportunities now will benefit you a lot in the future. Through the pathway/career fairs, we will help you learn more about the various careers and post-secondary opportunities. The career fair initiative would have 4-6 information sessions throughout the school year. Each information session targets a specific career field including STEM, Humanities, Arts, Business, Communications, etc. I would contact various Mackenzie alumni working/enrolled in a program from the career fields to be guest speakers, which would enrich this initiative as their insight would be invaluable. I also plan to contact other interested individuals who are experts in their field, to be guest speakers at these information sessions. As a Junior Representative, I want to do everything I feasibly can to help the Grade 9s and 10s be successful, and this would be a significant first step.
Engaging Spirit Weeks and School-wide Events
Mackenzie's community is known for its amazing spirit, and I would like to keep spirits high next year too! The spirit weeks at Mackenzie have always been a success, and I'd like to introduce some new events that would further enhance them. I would like to implement some competitive spirit day events between juniors and seniors, this will involve some friendly competition but will also act as a team bonding event between the grades. I would also work closely with the Athletic Council to bring in some more unique intramural events for the school. Finally, I'll make sure that students also have a say in the events that take place at Mackenzie by working to create better communication between students and SAC. These are some ideas I have to make spirit weeks more fun and engaging, and if you have any ideas feel free to drop them on the suggestions page!
Mental Health Initative
I would work towards increasing accessibility to resources. Students can express their suggestions or concerns and hear back in a timely manner, as well as attain resources for proper mental health and welfare. The resources will be widely available to all students at all times and will help in ensuring well-being. This can be implemented through the use of a specialized website.
