Social Studies HMs Constitution Article

Abby Hitchner & Francesca Mariani March 31, 2014

The 8th grade class of 2013-2014 would like to make a change in how the HMS Government is run. The students at HMS would like to have more of a say on decisions that affect our school. We have come up with a new government, with new positions & requirements that we feel will benefit both teachers & students. We have revised a new Constitution consisting of a Legislative, Executive, & Judicial branches. To be apart of this new government there are certain expectations that the students must meet. Not only will this benefit the students, but it will also be beneficial towards the HMS staff.

The first branch of the HMS Government will be the Legislative Branch. Like the United States Constitution, there will be a bicameral congress. This congress will consist of a student house & a teacher house. Each homeroom will have two student representatives that will be elected by their homeroom. The candidates will write a speech or present a video to their class explaining why they should be chosen to represent their homeroom. The requirements to become a student representative also include maintaining a C average, have good behavior & attendance. The elections will be held in October to determine the homeroom representatives. The representatives will serve 1-year terms and will have the responsibilities of researching & debating proposed bills. In this branch there will be two elected speakers of the house, these speakers must be in the 8th grade and must have already been a homeroom representative in previous years. These speakers of the

house will serve as co-leaders and will be responsible for conducting meetings, voting, agendas, and setting committee chairs & members.

The other house of the bicameral congress will be the faculty senate. This group will consist of a minimum of nine volunteering faculty members. That will vote on proposed bills that they have reached & debated beforehand.

The next branch of the HMS Government is the Executive. This branch will consist of a president & a vice president. The candidates for president & vice president will run on a combined ticket of their 7th grade year, meaning they will serve their 8th grade school year. The requirements of becoming a president or vice president include maintaining a B average and must maintain good behavior and attendance. This branch will also consist of cabinet members that will be appointed by the president and then approved by the faculty senate