WESTBOROUGH – On Friday, June 7, students from Westborough High School will be rocking out as part of the Summer Music Fest.
Members of the student council are sure to be there.
After all, it was their idea.
The festival will take place from 6:30 to 9 p.m. in the lower parking lot, and it will include booths and food trucks.
“They can show off their skills,” said Kathleen O’Reilly, a member of the council helping to plan the event with fellow council member Georgia Tyrrell.
The festival originated in 2023, and it was a result of the student council reaching out to an overlooked part of the student population.
“We were looking at what populations we weren’t really targeting, namely students who perform music,” said senior Michelle Hung, currently president of the student council.
The council currently has 80-85 members.
Such efforts to bring together the school population has earned the council honors on both the state and national levels. Earlier this year, the WHS council earned its fifth straight Top 10 Project Award from the Massachusetts School Administrators Association.
Westborough High’s Student Council was also one of 12 councils nationwide to receive the “Decade of Excellence” award from the National Student Council.
It has earned a Massachusetts Gold Council of Excellence for the 14th year in a row, and it earned the National Council of Excellence for the 15th year.
That’s a lot of plaques for the display cases, but the council’s success goes beyond that.
Westborough High Principal Brian Callaghan said that the council’s list of sponsored activities is “endless.”
In addition to the music festival, the council has sponsored Student Open Forums, where it gathers questions and perspectives from the student body to present to administrators; Spirit Week, dances and other community-building events; and recognition of others, including staff and faculty.
“This selfless devotion has earned them the universal respect of virtually everyone,” said Callaghan.
Hung has been a member of the student council all four years. During her first two years, Hung – like everyone else – had to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.
“There were not a lot of in-person events [that first year],” she said. “In the second year, we brought back the homecoming dance – everyone wanted to get it back. It’s become part of our school tradition.”
More recent events sponsored by the student council included “Screen on the Turf” and babysitting as part of a parents night out.
“It was a pretty good turnout,” said Tyrrell of the movie screening.
The student council may sponsor another Halloween-themed movie screening later this year, but that’s still in the works.
Hung credited the School Committee and school administration for their support.
“[Superintendent Amber] Bock’s always been in our corner,” she said.
“As principal of Westborough High School, I have enjoyed the support of the student council in the implementation of school culture improvement efforts, year after year. Especially, coming out of the past couple of very challenging years,” said Callaghan.
For the latest on the council, visit them on Instagram, WHS_stuco_.
