involved, hosting more events and having a higher turnout at more conferences.” This was a great way to continue MCR’s relationship with MASC and offer the beautiful resources and school to the state.
On January 21st, 2023, MASC held its Legislative Session Training Day for workshop presenters at Wheaton High School in Montgomery County, the officially chosen location for the Legislative Session. The day included a run through of the workshops chosen for Legislative Session, tour of the school by Wheaton SGA president, Pratiksha Das, and a fun time taking pictures on the iconic steps. David Arowolo, MASC Second-Vice President says, “We had a pretty intensive and educated training for the Legislative Session. It was very fun!”
The newly renovated Wheaton High School is located in Silver Spring, Maryland. “We were so excited to have everyone visit our beautiful facility and make the most of our new school. It was even more fun that MCR was co-hosting as I am the secretary and it was a perfect blend of both worlds” says Pratiksha, senior class and Wheaton president. Although a first time host for Wheaton, MCR isn’t new to this game.
MCR has had a history of hosting events and has had a strong relationship with MASC through the years. The three-day workshop training, also known as “Advance”, takes place at the Smith Center in Montgomery County every year and is hosted by MCR. Shairee Arora, president of MCR says they are “trying to rebuild their connection with MASC and be more
The day concluded with groups being given time to discuss, prepare and then of course, more photos! The presenters were ready for the Legislative Session!
Photos from Training Day.
President Maja speaks during training.
Legislative Session took place on February 11, 2023 where candidates Abisola Ayola and Madison Watts were selected as the two finalists for the Maryland Student Member of the Board of Education (SMOB).
Although bitter and chilly outside, the auditorium was filled with positive energy and warmth as everyone was excited for the packed day ahead. The morning started off with opening remarks from MCR president, Shairee Arora, MCPS SMOB, Arvin Kim, Wheaton HS President, Pratiksha Das, and a very special guest, Lieutenant Governor Aruna Miller. Lt. Governor Miller was ecstatic to meet with student leaders across the state, stopping to pose for pictures with awe-struck students, and concluded her visit with a wonderful speech on the importance of our duty to vote for the next State SMOB. It was an honor and pleasure for her to stop by.
After groups had been dismissed, workshops began for the morning. Legislative Session is divided into “new to LegSes delegates”, who attended the Bills and Advocacy workshops plus the SMOBs workshop, and then the returning delegates had a review of the Bills, Advocacy, and SMOB workshop then explored Decision Making in Leadership.”
Then came the exciting part: voting for State SMOB finalists. There were five candidates chosen after a panel consisting of the MASC president, 2nd Vice President, a SMOB, a regional president, and a regional advisor, carefully reviewed applications and recommendations, then interviewed candidates to narrow the field down to five to proceed to the Legislative Session. The five finalists were Abisola Ayoola (Howard County), Leslie Monter-Casio (Caroline County), Madison Watts (Montgomery County),
and Shruti Vadlakonda (Howard County).
Candidates each had 5 minutes to give their opening statements and then had a Q & A session moderated by chair and president, Maja Durkovic. Students submitted questions through a Google Form that were then randomly selected and asked to each candidate. Questions ranged from experience, time management, to a crowd favorite, “Who would you vote for if you were a delegate?”, which definitely got people talking. After the last of their questions and closing remarks, delegates were dismissed for lunch where candidates were able to campaign..
After lunch, authorized voting delegates cast their vote for their top two choices, then participated in another round of workshops (parliamentary procedures) before heading back to the auditorium to vote on MASC Platform revisions and youthrelated bills in the Maryland General Assembly. The State Legislative Affairs Coordinators (SLACers) drafted the bill stances and were available to answer questions about the bills. MASC also had an additional guest speaker after the platform revision, Maryland Delegate Jared Solomon, who sponsored one of the bills that MASC discussed and took a stance to support. Unable to get through all legislation, some were tabled until the executive board meeting in February.
The day concluded with groups being given time to discuss, and prepare for the workshops they
are facilitating and then of course, more photos!”
Right from our very own homes, the February Executive Board meeting took place over Zoom on February 25, 2023. I, for one, was extremely grateful that I did not have to wake up early to travel across the state and could simply move from my bed to my desk to get ready for a fun day of activities and business!
The day started with a simple icebreaker, “Rose, Bud, and Thorn,” to increase the energy and get people talking. Moving into unfinished business, we voted on the tabled legislation from the Legislation Session. Moving rapidly through that legislation, President Maja Durkovic had the pleasure of facilitating the discussion of the nominees for the Catherine Nora Murray Unsung Hero Award. This award was started in 2009 in honor of Mrs. Murray, our last full-time MASC executive director.
After voting to select the recipient, MYAC representative, Grace Minakowski, gave some updates. Then, the MASC candidates for offices were officially announced; Angelina Xu, unopposed for President; Sophia Cabrera, Anousha Khan, Andrew Lieux, and Shruti Vadlakonda for First Vice-President; Zaria Naqvi, Hannah Solomon, and Lumina Zhang for treasurer; and Siya Jain unopposed for Second-Vice President. We then voted on spontaneous legislation, had a diversity, equity, and inclusion breakout discussion, and had department reports. We moved into evaluations and then concluded the day with some final announcements, convention updates, and MASC spirit wear and fundraising.
SMOB Candidates during Q&A.
Legislative Session workshop
February Executive Board Meeting.
An evil wizard cursed MASC Convention?! It’s up to the MASC Officers to save Convention. How will they do it? Stay tuned to see how the story unfolds!
Convention is finally back! From Maryland Association of Student day Convention since 2019. From our guest speaker, each and every this event memorable. Special thanks County Association of Student incredible
Although the WCASC staff and MASC leadership team made it look easy, an event as big as Convention isn’t easy to put together. The planning team had a lot on their plates, especially considering that all but two of them had never experienced Convention before.
Back in December, WCASC successfully made a bid to host Convention. From then on, their team of 28 worked tirelessly to prepare for the event, deciding on decorations, deciding on recreational activities, planning the Nora Murray hospitality center, and so much more. The staff arrived a day early to prepare for the conference and stayed late to ensure everything was wrapped up correctly. Shradha Bista and Alexandra Smith served as Co-chairs for this event, constantly moving around the hotel, and making sure everything was running smoothly. There’s no doubt that WCASC was the right region to host such an important event.
Advisor Hospitality area set up by WCASC.
WCASC staff stands ready to serve in advisor hospitality.
Part two: Evil Wizard Skit Linked Here
From March 22nd - 24th, the Student Councils held its first threeFrom workshops, to elections, to every one of the delegates made thanks goes to the Washington Student Councils for hosting such an incredible event!
A large task for WCASC was deciding in which activities delegates would want to participate. After the last general assembly each night, delegates could explore different rooms with different activities including an escape room, karaoke, a dance, Jeopardy, and even a Magician!. A popular competition for students was the Talent Show. Contestants had the opportunity to perform in front of four judges who selected three contestants to perform during the Awards Program Thursday night. The winners of the talent show were Kendyl Hawkins (First Place), Carlo Andanar (second Place), and Derell Gross of CASC (Third Place).
Students and adults from across Maryland facilitated workshops on topics ranging from leadership in film, to understanding the South Asian perspective, to marketing. Eden Wainwright, a junior from CASC spoke about her experience as a workshop presenter. “I absolutely loved teaching at convention this year! It gave me the opportunity to teach important issues to student leaders who can use that information in the future.”
A special part about Convention workshops is that no presentation is the same. Facilitators spend months drafting and practicing their workshops to make them perfect for the Convention. Guest speaker “The Amazing Tei Street” even had her own workshop. “My favorite part of The Amazing Tei Street workshop was the positive and safe environment that she created for all the student leaders to share and speak freely.” Bracey Gross said when asked about her experience.
The MASC Officers search the hotel for a missing spellbook. With the help of Ms. Moodie and Shradha, they find a book with a map of the Eastern shore inside and Ocean City marked off.
Congrats to the 2023-2024 MASC Officers
President: Angelina Xu (MCR)
1st VP: Anousha Khan (FCASC)
2nd VP: Siya Jain (CRASC)
Treasurer: Lumina Zhang (MCR)
Officers will be sworn in at the end of the executive board meeting on May 20th.
One of the biggest events for the Convention are the officer elections. Each year, candidates from across the state have the opportunity to address the delegation through campaigning, speeches, and a Q&A session. Starting on Wednesday evening, candidates and their campaign staffs rushed around the hotel, hanging up posters, handing out flyers, and talking to delegates about their platforms.
This year, candidates used creative ways to engage delegates during campaigning. Anousha Khan (FCASC ‘24), a candidate for MASC 1st Vice President, created a social media cutout marked #Anousha4MASC. Khan said she did the cutout so that students could have fun participating in her campaign. “Hearing about what I stand for and seeing the enthusiasm when my staff would offer to take their picture was so wholesome!” Andrew Lieux (CASC ‘25), another candidate for MASC 1st Vice President, called on students to share their stories through a post-it board. Lieux felt that “it came to show how vastly different we are, yet, we all come for one common goal to make change through sharing stories and shaping MASC!!”
After campaigning ended, candidates had the opportunity to give speeches and participate in a Q&A session. The speeches allowed the creativity of the candidates to shine, as they connected with the audience through energetic and unique presentations. The live Q&A session gave delegates from various regions and grades a chance to ask the candidates questions about their platforms. Student leaders stayed engaged and committed to making sure all aspects of MASC’s future were discussed.
An exciting part of MASC Convention was the second night’s Awards Program. Delegates were able to dress up for the awards ceremony where both advisors and students were honored. Advisors were recognized for milestones in the number of years they’ve been advisors, as well as the number of MASC events they attended this year. Students were recognized by their regions for outstanding leadership. MASC also presented special awards to school student councils, advivisors, and through the Catherine Nora Murray UnSung Hero and Dr. Susan Nash Travetto Friend of MASC awards, two adults who have contritued to MASC in special ways.
The Awards Program also featured a light ceremony in remembrance of Mrs. Catherine Nora Murray. She was the beloved former MASC Executive Director, Carroll County Regional Advisor, and most recently, the Baltimore County Regional Advisor who passed away in September 2022 after a 14 year battle with sarcoma. WCASC led the delegation in breaking glowsticks in her memory. Leaders spoke about her impact and Kendyl Hawkins performed an emotional Bruno Mars piece as student leaders across Maryland honored her memory and legacy. MASC plans to continue to honor her memory each year through a light ceremony to celebrate the light that Mrs. Murray brought to MASC and by continuing to award the Catherine Nora Murray Unsung Hero Award to individuals and organizations that contribute to MASC.
Mrs. Catherine Nora Murray
Moments from the ceremony
Mrs. Murray
Known by her motto “The “Amazing” Tei Street”, motivational speaker, Tei Street, provided an amazing closing keynote for Convention. She used stories from her childhood to describe important lessons she learned while growing up. Before her inspiring speech, she spent the first two days of Convention, leading workshops and icebreakers for delegates. Once it came time for her keynote, many delegates had already spoken with her and grown fond of her vivacious personality. During her presentation, she recalled the time she was dared by her best friends to go skydiving. It was during this scary experience, that she was able to find a voice inside of her that had been silenced for so many years. She stressed the importance of realizing the power that the student voice holds and the impact that it can have.
The Officer team finds a wand and a note on the beach that says teamwork. While in search for the perfect team to cast the spell, the Officers realize that the delegates of MASC convention are the only answer!
Student holds Tei Street’s book. Tei Streets speaks to delegation.