What is the Student Council? It would be simple to call them a group of student event-planners, but that definition falls short. The Fort Worth Country Day Student Council’s true role is so much more. They are the creators of school spirit (who else could get class-level dress up days?), dedicated to building a place where every student belongs. Driven by the voices of the FWCD community, the Student Council is the heart of the upper school identity.
The junior Student Council consists of five people: president Lucy Wegman ’27 and representatives Bella Rugema ’27 , Charlie Cady ’27 , Cecily Ozaeta ’27 , and Martha Wynn Senter ’27.
Wegman has led the class of 2027 since her freshman year, balancing Student Council with Breakthrough Boutique, Cooking for a Cause, and cheer, as well as many other responsibilities. Rugema, a three- year Student Council representative, is well involved with Link Crew, ballet, and competitive dance. It’s Cady’s first year on the Student Council, which he is juggling alongside four APs, theater, and cross country. Similarly, first-year representative Ozaeta is balancing those responsibilities with field hockey and school work. Senter, a representative since freshman year, also finds time for other activities such as Cooking for a Cause, Glow Fellowship, National Charity League, yearbook leadership, and more. They are, by any measure, a very busy group of people.
This engaged spirit is captured by Jenifer Giroir, Upper School United States History teacher and Student Council sponsor.
“All five smiles showed up, ready to go. It wasn’t a burden to them,” Giroir said.
It is well known in the Upper School that the junior Student Council is responsible for planning Homecoming each year, but few know the levels of intense effort behind the dance. What seems like one magical night is the result of a continuous project that began after finals last May. Seven months prior to the dance, on the last day of finals for the 2024-2025 school year, the entire Student Council gathered in the Martin Campus Center to discuss the following year’s Homecoming.
This meeting sparked Senter’s imaginative idea for a “No Place like Homecoming,” Wizard of Oz-themed dance, which evolved from a joking comment to the theme of the 2025 dance. This led to a well-organized week of fun dress-up days and activities for the whole FWCD community.
During this meeting, they also locked in the dates of Homecoming week with US Assistant Division Head Paula Weatherholt. They would later find out that this was a packed week, with Monday off and a class-level event day on Thursday. Yet, this only sharpened their focus and resolve. They continued to plan things like donuts and a coffee truck to make the shortened week as spirited as possible.
This type of flawless collaboration is a theme with this group.
“We are a pretty unanimous group, and everyone works very well together. I mean, I literally have the best reps,” Wegman said.
Since the creation of Homecoming is such a long process, the Student Council has had to sacrifice many hours of their free time to create the best possible time for everybody. Beyond Tuesday morning meetings, the Council also works during their free periods and days off of school.
They did not operate through delegation, but as a unified team, with the exception of decorations, led by Senter, and the overall leadership of Wegman. They managed every task from mass orders and hand-painted banners to meticulously sorting shirts by size and name.
One thing that became apparent when conducting interviews was this group’s team-first mentality. Not once did they mention separate goals; instead, they continuously talked about working together as a team.
“I mean, this year, it was at times, seamless, and everybody just had the same goal, and it felt authentic that we were all in it together,” Giroir said. “It was a truly authentic, genuine group effort to make [Homecoming] happen.”
Despite the stress of planning Homecoming, the 2027 Student Council was willing to collaborate to achieve whatever needed to be done. One of their primary goals was to make sure that the student body felt included and respected. They actively sought student opinion, such as sending a form for students to vote on the dance’s location, as well as music played. The Student Council is not just about a small group making decisions, but about creating a proud FWCD community mindset.
“The best quality you can have and be on Student Council is the ability to listen and receive feedback,” Wegman said. “Being able to take that and not beat yourself down over something you did poorly, but take it and learn from it and use the knowledge that people give you to help create a better community.”
Homecoming is not just a night but a lasting memory. While things such as tests are easily forgotten, being included on Homecoming night can be a memory that endures decades. So, it’s important to make sure everyone’s voice is heard.
“I think it was really awesome to see how willing everybody was to step up and hear other people’s opinions, points of view, and stress/tension, because everyone on the Council is so willing to help one another,” Senter said.
The point is clear: the Student Council is a lot more than just event planners. They are dedicated community builders investing immense amounts of time and effort in order to improve the Upper School. If you see a Student Council member, take a moment to thank them, because they’re working really hard to make the FWCD community reach its full potential.
With this team of dedicated students, next year’s seniors will be in capable hands, just as they are now. For the current sophomores on the council, some words of advice from your predecessors:
“Try to get everything done as early as possible. It reduces stress a lot,” Rugema said.
“Make sure you are doing what you want, not just what you as the Student Council wants, but like, what the people want. People have good input, and people know what they want,” Cady said.
“Start earlier than you think you need to. The tasks can pile up really fast. There’s so many little things like the week or two weeks before that you’ll be freaking out about, and that’s okay. You’re going to freak out. And that’s okay,” Wegman said.
“Do not be afraid of going above and beyond, because there’s nothing worse than doing the minimum, just to not feel the gratification, because it’s still work. But if you are doing what you really want to do, and you go all the way through with it, it’ll be so much better afterwards,” Senter said.
“Get on top of it really fast and be ahead of everything. Keep up with your work and don’t put it off,” Ozaeta said.
