ASB members resign in the wake of Homecoming events

Eloise GrahamStaff WriterIn response to what some believe to be irresponsible student behavior at the homecoming pep rally and football game on Oct. 22, Associated Student Body (ASB) members Charlie Schmittdiel and Meghan Loftin have been asked to step down from their elected positions, and all school-wide activities and events related to ASB are postponed indefinitely.According to Activities Director and ASB advisor, Verónica García-Hecht, students began to shout their graduating years (’11 or ’12) at the beginning of the pep rally, and continued to chant throughout.“It’s nice to be proud and it’s great and encouraged, but when you start chanting at inappropriate times,  it’s not acceptable,” García-Hecht said.Loftin, formerly the S-House Representative, was involved in the chanting during the rally.“I was chanting with my friends in the crowd and I guess we weren’t supposed to do that,” Loftin said.According to I-House Principal Renée Semik, students returned to the Science Quad after the rally, and an altercation ensued between senior and junior students.“The groups in the Science Quad were chanting years at each other and getting very close to one another. It reached a point where we were scared they would get into a physical altercation,” H-House Principal Leslie Wells said.According to Wells, the students began throwing food, pizza crust and water bottles at each other.“I tried to disperse them and they did not disperse. All who were seen throwing were escorted away and the rest dispersed when the bell rang,” Semik said.According to Garcia-Hecht, the behavior in question continued into the Homecoming football game against Beverly Hills High School, where now former Senior Class Vice-President Schmittdiel was seen making rude gestures toward the opposing football team and fans.“At the game, I saw [Schmittdiel] flipping off people. He was in the middle of it. He’s a great guy with a lot of spirit, and he just didn’t make the right choice,” García-Hecht said. “It’s unacceptable behavior, it’s just not okay.”García-Hecht suggests that the aforementioned students’ actions during the homecoming events are in violation of Samo’s ASB Code of Conduct, and confirms they were asked to resign from their respective positions as Senior Class Vice-President and S-House Representative on that premise.Loftin suggests that, while she will serve virtually the same purpose in ASB after she has resigned, Schmittdiel’s contribution will be missed by the student body.“I thought it was lame of them to make Charlie resign because his [position] was a big deal,” Loftin said. “It is really important to have two senior class reps, not one, so I think he’ll get it back.”Student Body President Azia Calderhead explained that the choice to request for the students’ resignations was not made by ASB, but instead was made by school administrators.“There were complaints from faculty and staff but the initial decision was made by the executive administrators,” Calderhead said. “It was a decision they felt they had to make because as a leader, you are held to higher standards.”García-Hecht later specified that it was her decision as Activities Director to ask for their resignations.If these students had not chosen to comply with the requests for resignation, according to Calderhead, the decision would have been put to a vote in an impeachment trial.“What will the class of 2011’s legacy be? I would like to see them as the class that brought pep rallies back,’” García-Hecht said.egraham@thesamohi.com