The Wyoming Association of Student Council Convention was a successful few days for junior Salem Brown. Her journey to her position wasn’t exactly typical, but she is excited for the new opportunities to come. 

Question: When and why did you decide to run?

Answer: I never really decided to run. I just pressed that I might be interested in running at WASC on a form we had to fill out to go. Then we had a meeting and got details, and I was like “Oh I guess it’s too late now,” then I ran and won. I didn’t even tell my mom I was running, and I had to make that phone call after I won.

Question: What was the process for running and how did you prepare?

Answer: I prepared by talking to a bunch of people and “campaigning” (I literally just made friends that I would have made if I wasn’t running anyway). We held an election here at the school with just the student council to decide who could run at the state level. Once I got elected to move on, I had to submit a whole bunch of things to the big WASC people, give a speech on the first day of WASC, and do a Q&A in front of the voters. That night they announced who moved on to the second round of voting, which is only two people running for each spot. Then me and the other kid had to give another speech the next day before everyone went and made final votes.

Questions: I know you’re a fan of the Lorax. How did you incorporate the Lorax in your speech?

Answer: I started by reciting a little of the Lorax, then led my speech by saying, “My name is Salem Brown, and I may not be able to speak for the trees, but I’m darn sure that I can speak for you students of Wyoming,” and that just kinda became the catchphrase. 

Question: What do you hope to accomplish in this position?

Answer: During my speech, I told everyone I wanted to create a space where everyone felt accepted and recognized for their accomplishments and received support for their needs, as well as creating a community that has strong connections with each other.

Question: What opportunities are you looking forward to that this position will provide?

Answer: This position will provide the opportunity to travel the country with other exceptional students, namely the student council state president, to represent Wyoming, and I’m so excited about that. It will also give me the opportunity to make changes especially geared towards schools like ours in the state.