Thinking about joining the Associated Student Body for the 2015-16 school year? Here’s how, straight from ASB themselves.

ASB represents the students of Carlmont High School through school activities to create an enjoyable campus for students. According to the Carlmont website,  ASB’s vision is to create a “Clean, supportive, desegregated environment where enthusiastic, involved staff and student body develops school spirit.”

ASB president senior Elise Dimick has been in ASB since she was a freshman.

“I am proud to be apart of ASB. I like that everyone in ASB wants to be at school. The people in ASB are spirited and help create a positive atmosphere,” said Dimick.

Although some students in the past had questioned the selection process, Dimick addressed those claim.

“New ASB members are chosen by their personality and qualifications as a leader they bring to the table. Not what they physically bring to the table,” said Dimick.

The executive board is made up of the ASB President, Dimick, and Vice Presidents, seniors Anna Shutovska, and Raine Kerhin.

The board decides who of the candidates gets into ASB.

“To be in ASB, you should have experience in leadership, good planning and communication skills, be personable and have a genuine interest in ASB,” said Dimick.

“The candidate should also have a passion for creating a better school and have a creative mindset with ideas for activities. They should have ideas for activities that can be used in ASB ready for their interview. We don’t like it when we interview someone and they say that they’re really spirited, but when we ask them what ideas they have for school spirit days, they have no ideas,” said Kerhin.

The ASB executive board also has some characteristics that they do not want in an ASB candidate.

“Do not do ASB if you just want it to look good on college applications. You should be genuinely interested in making Carlmont a better school,” said Dimick.

“We also want people who are trustworthy. We have to be able to trust the person to fulfil their responsibilities,” said Shutovska.

The executive board members are not the only ones with opinions. Jim Kelly, the ASB teacher gives his input on who gets into ASB too.

“To be in ASB, one should have a positive energy level, should be motivated, and have organizational skills. A candidate should have experience from a previous student government, leadership class, or other activities,” said Kelly.

Kelly also has advice for incoming ASB candidates.

“In an interview, it is expected that the student will be nervous, and they shouldn’t worry so much about that. The student should be prepared to share past leadership experience. Also, we don’t want to hear typical answers. Don’t tell us that you’re spirited because you love spirit and you want the whole school to be spirited. Tell us how you would do that; have ideas ready,” said Kelly.

Last year about 60 people applied to be in ASB, but only 6 were accepted.

“Some people just aren’t ready for ASB. They don’t have the leadership skills formed yet. If that is the case, we usually refer them to our leadership class,” said Kerhin.

Among the 56 rejects from last year is sophomore Nour Zabaneh.

Last year, Zabaneh ran for ASB vice president. When she lost the election, she decided to interview for commission.

“I don’t think I got in last year because I had a poor interview and there weren’t many spots available,” said Zabeneh.

Like many others, Zabaneh was referred to the leadership class.

“I hope that being in leadership will make my chances of getting into ASB better. I also hope that Mr. Kelly has been able to see my leadership skills improve by being in the leadership class,” said Zabaneh.

The most recent ASB members are this year’s freshmen class officers. Freshman Jimmy Rudger is this year’s freshman class vice president.

While Rudger did not have to be interviewed to be in ASB, he shared why he thought he got in.

“I think I was a good candidate for ASB because I am outgoing, I’m not afraid to meet new people, and I work well with others,” said Rudger.

For any students interested in being an ASB commissioner, there is a meeting Feb. 5.

The interviews for ASB begin on March 9 and continue until the 11th.