Carlie Friedman was the student council president this school year. Her involvement with the student council has been continuous since her freshman year of high school. She started freshman year as the class of 2024 secretary. She’d been involved previously, since fifth grade and through middle school, but felt her freshman year as secretary was when the student council became more serious. They were constantly working towards prom and setting up fundraisers. She enjoyed the experience as she got to see another side of how the school worked by being involved with the behind-the-scenes. She attributed her involvement in class council to helping her be prepared for school president and teaching her how to manage the workload. When talking about her role as president, she acknowledged how everyone on the school council put in the same amount of effort, and she made sure everyone was focused on their parts of work. She’s led the school council through all planning for events, always making sure everyone was on the same page.
Friedman’s extracurriculars outside include spending time with her friends and supporting school sports. She works two jobs, one at Fat Paulie’s and the other at Prestwick Chase, all the while maintaining a busy course load. She admitted much of her free time went to her school work, so when she had moments where she was truly free she enjoyed spending it with her friends.
When it comes to advice for potential members of student council, she made sure to establish that it was never too late to get involved. When it came to the role of president specifically, Friedman said, “As president it’s good to hold true to your opinions while also being understanding of others. One of the best parts in student council is we have a lot of discussions and disagreements but those are good because we get such different opinions. When we put them all together, it’s really helpful for putting together the best possible outcome for whatever we’re trying to plan.” She then described leadership as having the courage and confidence to be a strong voice for others, while also factoring humility to allow room for other’s voices.
After graduation Friedman is going to Northwestern University and plans on majoring in journalism with a possible minor in Latin. Student council has influenced her decisions by teaching her how to be a good public speaker and teaching her to be open to other people’s opinions. She’s not sure of how student government will work at the collegiate level, but is open to getting involved once she’s settled in.
Her favorite memory of this school year was the senior sunrise, because she liked seeing the whole class together and acting like a class as a whole instead of everyone and their individual groups. The first day the food truck came to the senior lot also received an honorable mention. Looking back at the entire year, Friedman’s favorite memory was when Saratoga Football played against Guilderland in 2022 and the team won in the last second. Everyone in the stands rushed onto the field. “It was a really thrilling and exciting experience that I didn’t even think I would ever get to witness in high school and seeing the comradery and happiness was super cool,” Friedman said.
When it came to Friedman’s graduation speech, her biggest influence was her grandfather. She disclosed how he’s one of her biggest role models in life, and on a recent visit she got to talking about her speech with him. Friedman and her father talked about the generational aspect of graduation, and she knew she wanted to incorporate that further into her speech. She also wanted to make sure that everyone at graduation felt seen and heard. She didn’t want her speech to only affect her friend group and their families, and is hopeful that it will reach not only the entire class of 2024 but their families as well. She said, “To the class of 2024 – thank you. I will forever cherish the memories we have created and the laughs we have shared in this life. We have found ourselves within each other.”
In Friedman’s final words to the class of 2024, she said, “Thank you. I will forever cherish the memories we have created and the laughs we have shared in this life. We have found ourselves within each other. Even though graduating may seem scary, remember to embrace the unknown. There are endless possibilities waiting for each of us and even when things are tough, know that tomorrow will be better. If it’s not, you say it again.”