Arvin Kim, a junior at Walt Whitman High School, is the next Montgomery County Student Member of the Board of Education (SMOB). Kim will assume his seat July 1, replacing Hana O’Looney, who graduates from Richard Montgomery High School in June.
More than 56,000 secondary school students voted in Wednesday’s election. Kim received 58.7% of the vote, defeating Ibrahima (Baba) Cisse, who received 40.8%.
Kim has served as vice president of the countywide Middle School Student Government Association and was treasurer and chief of staff for the Montgomery County Regional Student Government Association.He also served as director on the SMOB Advisory Cabinet.
He ran on a platform that called for mental health days and safer schools. During campaigning, he talked about a 180+ point plan centering around improving school safety, curriculum, mental health resources, equity and student participation in decision making.
Kim is a founding member of MoCo Pride Youth, a certified workshop presenter for the Maryland Association of Student Councils and vice president of the Asian American Progressive Student Union.
Cisse is a junior at Albert Einstein High School.
As SMOB, he will be a voting member of the Board of Education on all matters except negative personnel actions. He will not be paid but will receive a $5,000 college scholarship, student service learning hours and credit for one honors level social studies class.
Congratulations to Arvin Kim, who has been elected the student member of @mocoboe for the 2022-2023 school year! https://t.co/eBnkx4JOms pic.twitter.com/4goLWRWot5
— MCPS (@MCPS) April 20, 2022
