With the election for the Student Member of the Board (SMOB) over, Nate Tinbite has won with a convincing 74 percent of the vote, defeating opponent Zoe Tishaev, who won 26 percent of the vote.
Tinbite started his political career in seventh grade, when he protested for environmental regulation as a member of the school SGA. “I saw what was happening in our environment and I felt obligated to fight for the environment,” Tinbite said.
Tinbite served as the Chief of Staff for the successful campaign of Matt Post in 2017-18, as well as the president of the Montgomery County Regional SGA (MCR-SGA). However, Tinbite believes that his “speech at the March for Our Lives in DC” is what kick started his political career both locally and nationally.
Tinbite cares most about his environmental policy. “We need to install things such as solar panels and hydroponic systems at every school to keep our impact on the environment to a minimum,” Tinbite said. Although, he believes that “while we can do a lot in a year, this will need to be followed through with by other SMOBs. I hope that future SMOBs pick up where I leave off,” Tinbite said.
Tinbite believes that technology is the most important issue to be addressed in his term. “Schools are so far behind in the technological field that it’s embarrassing. We need to unblock and double the strength of the Wi-Fi, allow cell phone usage for all middle and high schoolers and allow personal accounts on Chromebooks. The system has done a lot in the past couple years, but we’re still behind,” Tinbite said.
An important issue that hits this school hard is infrastructure. This school has inconsistent HVAC systems, broken stall doors, crumbling walls, and rampant insects and mice. Tinbite says he plans to “reduce the number of portables at schools and prioritize HVAC systems,” but said he believes it unlikely that the rest of the board will agree to expedite repairs and renovations at this school.
An issue that affects Tinbite personally is the opportunity gap. “As an African-American, I have seen the effect that race can have on the opportunities you receive. I hope to expand the Minority Scholars Program to every school, expand Drivers Ed courses to those that can’t pay for them, make Pre-K available to all and decrease class sizes,” Tinbite said.
Students here are pleased with the election outcome. “When I read the policy sheet for both of the candidates, Nate seemed like the more qualified candidate,” junior Ian Wolfe said.
