One reason Wilcox High School events are so successful is because of the amazing ASB. ASB, short for Associated Student Body, is responsible for making sure students are connected through organized activities and events. ASB is in charge of putting together exciting events such as Fantastics, school rallies, and the Winter Ball. However, these events don’t happen every single day, so what do ASB students do on a day to day basis? 

Wilcox High School’s ASB consists of 17 members: President Anika Bose (12), Vice Presidents Melvin Mathew (11) and Aubri Lee (12), Secretary-Treasurer Ryan Ni (12), Publicists Zixiang Zheng (12) and Lucas Yi (11), Activities Commissioners Brian Ridder (12) and Sophia Gentry (12), Clubs Commissioners Adil Iftikhar (12) and Pranav Subbarayan (12), Sports Commissioners Justine Valdivia (12) and Iyaad Ahammed (12), Spirit Commissioner Shiv Dagar (11), and the four class presidents: Belle Eaton (12), Alyssa Robles (11), Todd Beadell (10), and last but not least Shriya Ratnani (9). Additionally, this year is Ms. MacDonald’s 59th year as the ASB Vice Principal of Facilities and Student Engagement. A newly-opened high school in Santa Clara Unified School District was named and dedicated to Ms. MacDonald for the lasting devotion she has put into the Wilcox community. 

Here’s what a few of our students have to say about their day to day life as an ASB student. When asking Activities Commissioner, Sofia Gentry, the basics of being on ASB, she explained, “We collaborate as a group and work on putting social events together.” Although it may seem like there are no events happening right now, ASB is currently planning out the first Wilcox dance this year: the Mirror Ball, which will be held on January 14 at the Santa Clara Marriott. This event would not happen without our wonderful ASB. Additionally, our ASB is currently working on what is called a “Toy Drive.” Wilcox’s Secretary-Treasurer, Ryan Ni, explained, “to ensure that there will be at least one present for each elementary school student at George Mayne on Christmas, we’ve spent numerous hours in ASB to wrap up to 400 presents.” ASB isn’t any normal class where one sits and learns, but it is a hands-on class where students are able to improve not just themselves, but others around them as well.

Furthermore, Wilcox High School’s Spirit Commissioner, Shiv Dagar, explained what ASB does every single block day: “We have our meetings where we discuss any future events and discuss purchase orders that go to our school because ASB has to approve them.” During these meetings, ASB is also in charge of approving any clubs that are being presented to them. A student can create their own club, but only through their approval. ASB is an example of student government. Due to the amount of collaboration they have, it is important that they have these block day meetings. Dagar explains, “Obviously, we all collaborate and make suggestions because it is an open field– that is the point of student government– to give students a voice.”

However, each ASB member is responsible for a specific task based on their roles, therefore their tasks aren’t always overlapping. For example, Ryan Ni is responsible for taking detailed notes during the block day meetings. He also has to approve purchase orders by signing specific papers. Additionally, the famous announcements that students hear everyday are from the publicists, Lucas Yi and Zixiang Zheng, who are responsible for attending to the daily announcements. 

With the amount of work put in, why is being an ASB student so appealing? Not only can making a campaign speech in front of the whole school be terrifying, but running for ASB also takes a lot of dedication and hard work. Yi explains, “I ran with two people, Ryan Ni and Keith Maben. We made a campaign and publicized all over social media as well as [the] school. I had to give written paragraphs saying why I want to join ASB. I also had to get teacher recommendations. Then came the election, where I had to give a speech in front of the school, to get voted for.”

It may seem like ASB only appears during special events, but there are many things that go on in the shadows. For one, Wilcox’s events take a numerous amount of planning and preparing. ASB students truly help students have as much fun as possible, and are selfless students who work hard to allow these special events to happen. ASB helps out with many organizations and are always open to help students if they are struggling with trying to get involved. Without ASB, Wilcox would not be as successful and fun as it is today.