SMOB Final Candidates Chosen, Students To Vote Online In May

Columbia MD

23 February, 2021

2:56 PM

Description

HOWARD COUNTY, MD — Students will vote on Canvas to select the 2021-2022 student member of the board May 3-5. The online general election will be held by the Howard County Association of Student Councils. The 2021-2022 SMOB candidates are Peter Banyas of Howard High School and Dhruvi Mirani of Glenelg High School. The two candidates were chosen from among 13 nominees at the HCASC Convention, held February 17 with 132 delegates participating. Convention delegates are nominated by their principals and peers to represent each middle and high school across the Howard County Public School System. Banyas and Mirani will use social media, personal websites and the HCPSS Student Community Canvas page to articulate their respective platforms and why they are the best choice to represent the student body on the Board of Education next year. All 6th through 11th grade HCPSS students are eligible to vote in the SMOB election. Students will receive Canvas announcements explaining the election and voting process. Media specialists at each school will facilitate the voting process and the HCASC advisor will collect results from each school and compile all data in a final report to the board of education. Students will have the ability to watch a video about the candidates prior to casting their votes. The video will feature the candidates' personal statements and answers to questions about what they hope to accomplish as SMOB, as well as the relevant experiences they bring to the position. Videos are available for viewing on the Howard County Student Community Canvas page. The new SMOB will be sworn in during the July 8 board meeting to serve as a member of the Howard County Board of Education during the 2021-2022 school year. The SMOB is eligible to vote on all issues except those pertaining to budget, personnel or other restricted matters.