Money does not grow on trees. It is not an endless resource. So, when the student body is given a certain amount of money each year, it makes sense to use it all. Upper schoolers at Wilmington Friends should be using all of the student budget to create changes in the community, but we’re not. Why?

The upper school student body received 570 dollars at the beginning of this school year. The students can use this money to make improvements to the school through business meetings that happen about once a month. But how often does this money go completely unused by US students? According to Bill Baczkowski, the associate head for finance and operations at Wilmington Friends school, “It is not often that no money gets used. Most years, at least some of the money gets used.” Even if some money gets used there are usually 100-200 dollars left over. So, where does this money go? “Any unused money goes straight back into the overall surplus that then gets put into reserves,” said Bill Baczkowski. Upper schoolers are very lucky to be receiving this money every year, but are we wasting it? Everyone who attends this school should want it to become the best it can be; that’s only possible through improvements we suggest and then make. By making proposals and coming to agreements we can achieve many upgrades for our school.

The best way for us to achieve change and use our budget is through agenda meetings and our business team. The biggest objective of the business team is to provide feedback on school life concerns, such as the schedule, student surveys, or the cafeteria. The business team also works to make sure all of the school’s spaces are utilized. “I would love to see that the business team can work with middle school to get the inner courtyard available on a regular basis for quiet study,” said Mrs. Zug, head of the Upper School. Anya Agarwal, a freshman said,” I would love some more charging spaces in the library and a more efficient pickup system.” All of these tasks can be accomplished in business meetings. These topics could form lively discussions and eventually become an upgrade to our overall school and enjoyment. Any money necessary could be used for these desires.

Most things can continually be improved; that includes our school. We should be using all the money we are provided to make our school a better place for learning. Either we make decisions on how we want to spend our budget, or any extra money will just go back into the overall school fund instead of into a better Wilmington Friends experience for us. The choice is yours, students; do you want a better WFS? Then work with agenda and the business team to use our school budget for something students want.