On June 14 Toll Gate senior Nathan Cornell will walk across the stage at the Knight Campus of CCRI, and if he has his way he will go from student to School Committee member.

Over the past year Cornell, 18, has become involved with the school district outside of his traditional role of a student. Several months ago he advocated for a city resolution establishing the Community Outreach Educational Committee, which he now co-chairs alongside School Committee member Karen Bachus. This committee brings together various stakeholders from the community, including students, teachers, administrators and parents to discuss issues facing the school system and make recommendations to the City Council and School Committee. Cornell also serves in the Warwick Students Advisory Committee, which he chairs, the Warwick City Charter Review Commission and the Warwick Public Schools Public Relations Committee.

“Even though I am on all these boards and committees, I can only recommend and don’t have an actual say in how things move forward,” Cornell said. “I think I can bring a lot to the table. I have a different perspective as a student and can speak to how everything is actually affecting us.

With this in mind, Cornell has announced that he will be running for school committee this fall for one of the two at-large seats on the ballot.

He has been toying with the idea of running for a few months and weighing the pros and cons as he will also be enrolled in the University of Rhode Island’s political science program this fall. As he thought more about it, Cornell came to realize his “heart was in it” and he decided to run even though he will no longer be a student in the district.

“Despite the issues with the school system I am invested and interested in being a part of the solution that makes it better for everyone. I see a lot of problems and I am not ready to just sit back and do nothing, when I could do a lot to fix the problems. I think it’s my duty,” Cornell said.

If elected, Cornell said he would support music and the arts and would like to see the consolidation process, as necessary as it may be, given more thought. Currently, he believes the administration is trying to do “too much at once, which leaves a lot of room for error.”

He also believes that the district is sufficiently funded, but the issue comes in the money being “applied in the wrong directions,” such as the use of a public relations consultant and prolonged arbitration with the teachers contract.

One of the biggest issues Cornell sees with the district, something he would work on, is transparency within the school committee to not only the City Council but also the community at-large. He said the school committee is drastically lacking in communication and “barely interacts” with the City Council or the city.

He believes many of the challenges facing the school department could have been avoided or prevented with a “bit more transparency and a little more investment” on the part of the school committee.

One example he uses is the teachers contract.

“I think some personalities in those positions just don’t want to put the work in to come together with a compromise. This has been going on too long. It has added cost and added stress to the district. We need to end this as soon as possible.”

If elected, Cornell would like to see more teacher involvement in the whole school committee process, consulting with the committee on all decisions.

He would also like to see students participate more in committee matters, so the committee can see the direct effect of their decisions as well as receive “insider information” on issues students are most concerned with.

Being a student, Cornell believes he will be able to bring a “fresh perspective,” understanding first hand what it means to be a student in today’s schools.

“The whole reason we do this is for the good of the student, and I know what that means personally,” Cornell said. “I have also been involved on the political end for a short time and don’t have any long standing prejudices. This district needs new ideas, new blood. New times need new solutions to accomplish anything.”

Being so young in this campaign is something Cornell believes will be both an asset as well as a deterrent. Some people will appreciate his youth and openmindedness while others may question if he is prepared for the role.

The foundation of Cornell’s campaign is that the school committee needs to be more proactive in their community outreach as well as welcoming to other perspectives and opinions from the various stakeholders in the city. Cornell said the committee must do a better job of communicating their processes, as well as how and why they make their decisions.

“I want to fix the district and think I could do it. We once had a great district and I think we could get back to that. We want to see a positive future,” Cornell said.

Cornell is expected to host his first fundraiser at the end of June or early July and will be “walking the city.” For more information on his campaign visit his Facebook page, “Nathan Cornell for Warwick School Committee 2016.”

The two at-large seats on the committee on the ballot this November are currently held by Bachus and Jennifer Ahearn.

COMMITTEE CANDIDATE:

Nathan Cornell, 18, has announced he will be running for the at-large seat on the school committee. Over the last year he has become increasingly involved with district matters and also sits on several committees and commissions concerning the district.