LOYAL. LOCAL. COMPLETE.
A fifth grader at Carolyn-Wenz Elementary has chosen to be proactive within his school. Will McMahan’s ideas and actions, as a member of the Student Council, led to the installation of a new sidewalk at the crosswalk in front of the school.
Every year at Wenz, students are encouraged to apply for a student council position within their class.
“Each student receives an application, and if they choose to be in Student Council, they can fill out the application and apply. The class gets to vote on who would be the selected student council representative from the room,” said Jessica Mayhugh, Elementary Art Teacher and Student Council Sponsor. “With each application, they kind of give some ideas, and they give their class some reasons why they think they would be a good representation for them. They also have some goals that they would want to achieve in the school and it will represent who is a good leader.”
McMahan felt the need to put himself out there as a possible candidate to represent his fourth-grade classroom.
“I had several ideas that I thought would be pretty cool and important. Doing that would be so cool. So what other options did I have?” said McMahan.
In the fall of 2023, McMahan became his class delegate with the promise he would get rid of muddy shoes after school by putting in a new sidewalk.
“Basically, one day I’m walking down to go back home and I see the pathway across from the crossing guard. I was like, this could be dangerous if no one was watching. If it wasn’t done, it could’ve led to future accidents,” said McMahan.
McMahan’s teachers speak highly of his determination, passion and patience throughout the entire process.
“So in Will’s application, he’s very passionate. He had a lot of things that he wanted to get done in the school. And he was very passionate about this crossing area over here at Wentz,” said Mayhugh. “He gave us the idea, and we, I think, brought it to Mrs. Carroll, and she brought it to someone else. Throughout the year, he was always very on top of it, like he wanted to get this done because he thought this would really benefit the students and even the parents in this area at drop off and pickup time.”
Third-grade teacher and co-sponsor for Student Council, Linda Young, also expressed her appreciation for McMahan’s effort.
“It was so organic how it happened. We had a lot of applications for student council and none of them had anything super actionable like that. A lot of them were like, well, let’s have more, you know, parties, let’s serve ice cream, you know, things that kids typically think of. And so his really stood out to us,” she said.
McMahan feels great pride in the work he’s done to get to this moment and he is excited for the new addition outside of his school.
“It feels great. Imagine something you thought of literally come to life,” he said. “I’ve done what I thought was important.”
After a year of check-ins and progress reports, McMahan was finally able to stroll across the crosswalk and onto a new sidewalk this week. The concrete pad was officially installed on Monday, Aug. 19 and it has been “well utilized since,” according to Carolyn-Wenz principal Megan Carroll.
Students and staff will be able to use the new concrete sidewalk for years to come, thanks to McMahan’s concerns and actions.
“I’ve been here for several years and there’s always been a piece between the road and the sidewalk of grass that has just been trampled. Then it gets muddy, or kids go around the curb, so they’re walking alongside the road and it becomes a safety hazard,” said Mayhugh. “And so now, I just think it’s cool for this young man to see you know, ‘my hopes, my dreams, my goals, my ambition, has finally become a reality.’ And this is something that’s going to not just be good for this school year but for many, many school years. That’s going to affect many, many students and give them a safe place to walk and a path to have clean shoes.”
Staff at Wenz see bright things in his future and hope he stays true to his unique self throughout the rest of his life.
“He is very much an outside-the-box thinker. (He has a) dry sense of humor and funny, funny wit. And I will say, he is persistent,” said Carroll. “He sees the need for change, and he wants to see that happen. And he will ask about it and keep with it. He’s a great kid. He’s a great student. He works hard in school. He is just one of those kids that you enjoy, and you enjoy talking to.”
As for his future on the student council, McMahan feels his work there is done, for now. However, he has enjoyed the time he spent with all of his peers and advisors.
“I had fun serving on the student council last year. I will be busy with band and choir this year,” he said.
McMahan expresses special thanks to Chris Redman, the Street Department, Mrs. Carroll, Mrs. Schmitt, Mrs. Young and Mrs. Mayhugh for all of their hard work and support through the process of making his dream come true.