Leadership at Pacifica extends far beyond traditional titles like ASB and or club officers. It’s about giving every student a voice and a chance to make a real impact. From the Bridges Leadership Training Series to the GGUSD Student Board Representative position and the Superintendent’s Advisory Group, Mariners have multiple opportunities to grow their skills, represent their peers, and help shape decisions at both the school and district levels. These programs not only build confidence and leadership experience, but also ensure that student perspectives are heard where they matter most. As Pacifica continues to grow and change, these leadership opportunities help students step into bigger roles, speak up about issues that matter to them, and take a stand for their school and community beyond the classroom.
The Bridges Club’s Leadership Training Series
To start off, one of the leadership opportunities in Pacifica is the Leadership Training Series by our Bridges Club! In this five-part program, it teaches students to gain transferable leadership skills as well as interpersonal, facilitation, and conceptual skills. Along with that, students who participate in this training will be able to receive the Groundswell Leadership Certificate and a summary of the training that they can put in their resume through attending all five available sessions. This year, the Bridges Leadership Training Series was hosted on Fridays during Tutorial or in the Auditorium, with students signing up 5 Star to attend on March 6th, March 13th, March 27th, April 3rd, and April 10th. For some context, this new program at our school was recently implemented when Pacifica got the chance to partner with a local nonprofit organization called Groundswell, who have partnered up with schools across Orange County to host their own personal leadership workshops to students and is the parent organization of the Bridges club itself. The program came to our school as a pilot version and will be hosted at a larger scale next year, where they will host the program in the fall and spring. When interviewing, Mx. Aceytuno who is the Bridges Specialist from Groundwells on their thoughts, surrounding the purpose of this program they explained how this program is centered on empowering students to create change on the campus and promote belonging, inclusivity and diversity. Mx. Aceytuno also went on to mention that at each session, “Students were able to learn about becoming a leader in their own way, creating a positive team culture, leading team building exercises, facilitating team meetings, public speaking, communicating through conflict and creating a vision for your team and executing that vision. For each lesson students engaged in activities that helped them to gather a deeper understanding of the leadership skill they are learning about.” Moreover, asked about how successful the program itself was this year, Mx. Aceytuno explained that even though it was a plot version, they felt that the students who participated did appreciate being in a space where they were not only able to learn these different types of leadership, but also feel comfortable in figuring themselves out as leaders. From that alone, it is enough for Mx. Aceytuno and the members of Way Ground understand that they succeeded in their purpose of guiding these students. If you are a student interested in leadership or even already in leadership roles, such as in sports and clubs, you can always turn to our Bridges Leadership Training Series for guidance on how you can be a better leader!
The GGUSD Student Board Representative
A big opportunity is available for students to take on a district-level leadership role as the GGUSD Student Board Representative. Each year, every high school in the district selects one junior to run, and those eight students are interviewed at the district office for the single student seat on the Garden Grove School Board. The student who is chosen sits with the board at all of its meetings and serves as the official student voice for the entire district. Even the seven students who are not selected now will become part of the Student Senate, a group that regularly meets with district leaders to share concerns and ideas from their campuses, ensuring that multiple student perspectives are heard. Explaining why this role matters, Ms. Ibarra said that it “gives Pacifica a voice with Dr. Mafi, the superintendent, and with Dr. Stephanie Heflin, who oversees secondary education for grades 7 through 12,” and that “this is how your district leadership listens to you.” Current Student Board Representative and senior Sierra Sack explained that she wanted the role so she could “represent the larger student voices and bring it to a district level, so that some of the more common problems that are felt at the school can be brought to a district level.” She believes it’s important for students to be in this position “so that they can get their voices to be heard,” since they are the ones actually going to school, preparing for college, and trying to make their experience “the best that it should be and can be.” To make sure she is not just speaking for herself, Sierra helped create a Google survey that was answered during homeroom and gathered feedback from over 1,000 students on mental health, college and career readiness, and grading. For her personally, mental health is the top issue to bring to the Board’s attention because she feels all students should know about the resources available to them so they can feel supported and truly enjoy coming to school. This year, Pacifica has 3 candidates: Kai Moses, Greta Greaves, and Alan Pham (current Juniors) running to become the next GGUSD Student Board Representative, giving students a direct chance to choose who will speak for them at the district level. Each candidate brings a different set of experiences and priorities, but all share the same goal of amplifying student voice beyond campus. Through the upcoming school-wide election, Mariners will be able to decide which class of 2027 leader they trust to attend Board of Education meetings, join the Student Senate, and continue the work of representing Pacifica’s needs and concerns to district leaders.
The Superintendent Student Advisory
The existence of our district’s Superintendent Student Advisory group allows for a group of students from each high school site to have a unique voice. They meet directly with our Superintendent, the leader of our district’s vision, and provide her with the students’ perspective on issues that matter most to them. The mere fact that such a group even exists speaks to the importance GGUSD places on student voice and input. Afterall, it is the students the district serves, first and foremost. This group of students at Pacifica HS is made up of a mix of students from a variety of grade levels, backgrounds, involvements, and interests. This variety is key in order to ensure that the students’ collective voice represents as many individual voices and perspectives as possible. This voice most recently was heard thanks to the work of this student committee and a survey they put together, thanks to the leadership of Sierra Sack, a senior member of this committee who also serves on the District Student Representation Board and serves as our ASB President. This survey was given to all PHS students during a recent Home Room. Over 1,000 responses were received to a total of 15 questions, including open-ended opportunities for students to share suggestions and concerns. The questions were formed by this student group, and the responses will soon be analyzed by these same student leaders, with the support of site administration. The ultimate goal will be to determine trends in students’ perspectives in order to determine ongoing areas for growth for our campus, as well as areas to celebrate and recognize. This group of student leaders will be meeting on April 13th with Dr. Gabriela Mafi, our district superintendent, and surely their analysis of the students’ voice will help them determine next steps for our school. It is thanks to leadership opportunities like this that our school is able to be the inclusive and inviting place that it is. We know we aren’t perfect, but we also know that we have a lot to celebrate!
A student’s leadership at Pacifica is not determined by the titles of the communities or programs they are a part of, but rather by taking their own initiative in being willing to take action and voice their own thoughts to create a difference. By recognizing programs, such as the Bridges Leadership Training Series, the Student Board Representative role, and the Superintendent’s Advisory Group, students are given opportunities to contribute their ideas, represent their peers, and influence the decisions that shape their school. Consequently, these openings encourage students themselves to become more active members of their community as well as empower students to step into leadership roles; it ensures that their opinions remain a vital part in effecting how Pacifica becomes as it continues to develop.
