Politics, intrigue, drama—just a few aspects that shine during freshmen ASB elections. Personally, this is one of my favorite times of the year because I love taking in all the creative posters and campaign materials, and, based off the posters I have seen so far, this year’s freshmen class is just as creative as years past. Remarkably, this year’s election boasted a significant 17 candidates—an indication, I believe of the Class of 2026’s enthusiasm for leadership and community participation.

ASB Director Ms. LaBonte agreed with both my awe of the volume of candidates and my love of campaign posters, sharing, “I am very excited about these elections. The fact that 17 freshmen are putting themselves out there for this election is awesome; running is scary knowing that winning Is not guaranteed for anyone. The Class of 2026 has great energy and wants to get involved. I think the class officers will be a great addition to ASB and will be an asset to their class. I am looking forward to working with the class officers and seeing what they accomplish this year. Every year, I look forward to reading all of the posters and seeing each person’s creativity. I learn pop culture references, if there is a certain theme or celebrity that is popular with the class, and laugh at the puns!”

When I stopped by the freshmen class’s election assembly to listen in on a few of the speeches, I was so impressed by the candidates’ support and positivity for each other—it was touching to see how their feelings of sisterhood and friendship were not dampened by competition.

One of the candidates for treasurer, Giselle Gomez, confirmed my observations: “Running for ASB has been a really fun experience and an exciting opportunity to be involved in our school’s community; even though it has been a little stressful, we are all friends and in this together!” Additionally, president candidate Michaela Watson described how this sense of friendship made both the publicity and speech-giving processes that much better, saying, “Seeing each others’ funny posters made us all laugh, and because our freshmen class is so close already, giving my speech was the easiest public speaking experience I’ve ever had!”

Before the results came in, I wanted to get a feel for why these newcomers made the brave decision to run for office. Secretary candidate Bella Vallejo clarified why she chose to take the leap and join the ASB leadership race, explaining, “I already love Rosary so much, and it seemed like a great way to be part of the community on campus!”

After the freshmen voted before school and during break on Sept. 15, the results were tallied… Here are the ASB class officers for the Class of 2026:

President: Michaela Watson

Vice President: Sami DiCrisi

Secretary: Julianna Estrada

Treasurer: Parker Yee

Running for a class officer position in your first year of high school is no easy feat, and I strongly commend all the candidates for putting themselves out there; in fact, as someone who ran for treasurer and lost in my own freshmen year, I empathize!

Luckily, the girls who did not win this year did not seem too deterred—when asked if she’d be open to running again next year, president candidate Savannah Minton stated, “I think I would run again, it was really fun experience and I enjoyed getting to show what I can do.” Taking on a leadership position while tackling the early challenges of high school is no doubt challenging, but I am certain this new cabinet of excellent students will be up to the task!