Student Advisory Council member speaks on her time with the group

One Portage Collegiate Institute (PCI) student was grateful to have her voice heard on a provincial level.

Mia Beetham Outingdyke is a Grade 10 student at PCI and was selected to be on the Manitoba Student Advisory Council. The group of students reports to the minister of education and early childhood learning to give their opinions and advice regarding topics emerging in schools.

"It's fun; you get to help people all across Manitoba in schools if they have some struggles or things they'd like to do differently," explains Beetham Outingdyke.

She adds that the other students on the council were great, which led to good conversations about all sorts of topics relating to schooling. While Beetham Outingdyke was the only PCI student on the council, she never felt like she was excluded from the group.

"It definitely felt like a group conversation because everyone was chiming in with their ideas and what they thought," mentions Beetham Outingdyke. "It was never really one-sided."

She explains when she was filling out her application for the council, all she had to do was talk about herself a little bit, as well as what she'd like to see change within schools.

"We've had three online meetings, and I think they were maybe three hours each," says Beetham Outingdyke. "If you couldn't come or if you had to leave early, you could just tell them, and they'd be fine with it."

The deadline for applications to the new council is March 31st.

For the full press release from the government of Manitoba or to apply to the Student Advisory Council, click here.