Giving Students a Voice

When Shiva Rajbhandari went to the polls to vote for members of his school board last September, he was extra excited. Shiva had just turned 18, so it was the first time he was eligible to vote. But there was an even bigger reason the day felt momentous: Shiva’s own name was on the ballot. 

By the time the votes were counted that night, Shiva had a third reason to be thrilled: He’d made history by becoming the youngest member of his school board in the state’s history. A school board is a group of local citizens who help create policies and goals for the area’s public schools. Shiva was the first student appointed to the board. “I was watching Ferris Bueller’s Day Off with my friends when we heard the results,” the high school senior recalls. “I was stunned.”

Shiva has been politically active since the seventh grade, when a science class sparked his interest in climate change. Over the years he’s also taken up causes such as gun violence prevention and voting rights. Along the way, he realized that running for his school board was the perfect way to advocate for issues facing teens like him. 

“The school board is one of your most local forms of government. It’s the most direct form of democracy we have, so your vote really counts,” he says.

To run for school board, he formally announced his candidacy, then enlisted friends and family members to spread the word about his campaign. He focused on issues directly facing teens, like mental health and the start times of local schools.

Since being sworn into office in September, Shiva has been balancing his school board duties with schoolwork and college applications. Being a student himself, he’s able to hear firsthand from his peers about changes they’d like to see in their schools and communities. His biggest goal is to convince his fellow board members to create a permanent slot on the board for a student member. “I really hope I can make it the norm to have a student on the board,” he says. “Students belong in all places where decisions are being made, and especially decisions about education and schools.”