Ayesha Khan gets off the sophomore student cabinet zooms every week, preparing as president of the class of 2023 to better her peers’ experiences. Although we haven’t been able to be in school right now because of the circumstances, student cabinet is meeting once a week on zoom and are going well. They are hoping to meet in person when school resumes. Khan and sophomore cabinet members’ main goal this year is for the student body to be assured that they’ll get through this pandemic. They want to be there to advocate for their peers through these tough times, especially with remote learning.

Coronavirus had changed this cabinet class president drastically and has allowed her to become more mindful of the people around her and the opportunities she is lucky to have. “Hopefully, if school resumes I am the most excited about seeing my peers and my teachers in the halls. It’s something I would’ve never imagine myself saying before COVID but this pandemic did impact and change us in many indescribable ways. Even a small thing such as seeing my peer and teachers in the halls is something I would be completely grateful for,” Khan said.

However throughout these times Khan and sophomore cabinet have been able to reach their class to let them now what is going on in school because some students may not be checking their emails for updates on what’s going on at school.

“I plan on helping our student body by trying my best to lead the sophomore cabinet. In the sophomore cabinet, we have committees that are assigned to advocate for our student body. For example, our social media committee stays in touch with the rest of the body to make sure everyone is up to date with everything going on,” Khan said. 

Khan had a passion for a  leadership role from a young age in middle school student council. Although she didn’t know that she would exactly become class president she just knew that she wanted to partake in a leadership role to help her peers. Now that she is class president her favorite part about having that title  is having the ability to help her peers. “It’s something I am extremely grateful for. I look forward to every meeting we have, looking for new ways to help out our student body,” Khan said

In addition, Khan has learned many valuable life lessons since she’s been class president that have changed her in many ways. It gave her a new perspective on such things. She had to learn to put personal opinions aside and think about the student body before she thought about anything else, which is a critical lesson that teaches her selflessness and can benefit her in the future.

These skills have assisted her last year and will this year too. Some of Khan’s and the sophomore cabinets’ greatest accomplishments from last year are that they are incredibly proud of their fundraising. She expressed that every member of the club was determined to raise money for the senior gift. With the help of freshman cabinet sponsor, Joyce Van Alstin and her fundraising ideas, they were able to raise a great amount of money for the student body.

Along with skills that Khan has learned as a class president, she has also acquired new traits throughout her profound amount of time and experience as a remote learning student. She has learned new skills such as managing her time more efficiently, especially when she finds herself getting caught up doing other distracting things at home. “I’d say managing skills will help me drastically in the future especially in college so I am also very thankful for that in a way,” Khan said.

From one sophomore student’s perspective, she is an accepting person who brings everyone together. “She’s always bright and makes people around her feel comfortable,” sophomore Kaylie Kim said.

“Ayesha has done so much for the class of 2023, one main thing she has been advocating for our class is to bring awareness to mental health. For the past two years she has been pushing for Niles West to to be more aware about how school and remote learning effects the students. During COVID-19, many people feel alone and lost. But Ayesha Khan has brought our class together and has been such a strong leader. She has led us to many new ideas while she is still focusing on everyone’s well being,” sophomore Hina Shehzad said.

Although it’s been an obstacle for Khan and other students to have to transition from real-life school to remote learning, she wants to continue to assure her class they can get through this together with hope and positivity.