Redmond HS student chosen for State Student Council post

Redmond High School sophomore JJ Riddell was recently elected to serve a one-year term on the executive board of the Oregon Association of Student Councils.

The elections took place in November at the annual fall conference in Seaside, where a group of 1,500 students and advisors from over 100 high schools were in attendance.

“The student board members are extremely valuable to our association,” OASC Executive Director Sara Nilles said. “They are also outstanding leaders in their own school and community. They each bring their own unique perspective to our statewide association.”

As an executive board member, Riddell will represent his region and join a group of ten other youth board members, and ten adult board members from around the state. His duties include planning and presiding over two statewide conferences, communicating with schools in his region, writing newsletter articles and participating in policy decisions for the association.

“JJ is one of the most natural leaders I have been around in my 11 years of teaching,” teacher Trevor Tusow said. Tusow acts as Riddell’s advisor in a leadership class. “He is intuitive and thoughtful, but also very strong-willed. He works well with everyone because he listens to their ideas and helps improve on them.”

In addition to his OASC duties, Riddell serves at sophomore class president at Redmond High.

The Oregon Association of Student Councils, founded in 1949 and sponsored by The Confederation of Oregon School Administrators, serves middle and high school students and advisers from around the state. They provide conferences, workshops, online newsletters and summer leadership camps designed to heighten student leadership development and improve school climate.