Make a Difference Week is known to many students to be a time of fundraising and activities that bring the school together for a common cause. However, there is often a lot of work done in the background to prepare for the week. Senior Karla Castillo, a member of Student Government, talks about the work she has done to get ready.

“My main job has been making posters. Since I’ve joined Student Government I’ve established myself as someone who has nice handwriting, so making posters was a given. I also took part in hanging up streamers around the school,” Castillo said. 

While it may seem trivial to some, the physical decorations around the school can remind students of the events going on to support MAD Week, and simultaneously doing more to support the chosen charity.

“I spent about five hours outside of school preparing and setting up for MAD week. It took a while, but I honestly enjoyed it because it’s nice seeing the school look fun for MAD week,” Castillo said.

Castillo believes school spirit is partially responsible for the success of MAD Week fundraising, and that this is one of the essential factors to help reach the monetary goal.

“I’m super excited for MAD week because the charity we chose this year is so fantastic. I am a part of the school’s environmental club so we have been working with Save the Rainforest all school year. Seeing the whole school now work with them is great because I know it’s such a great program. Part of me is worried about the fact that we have had pretty low morale from the school so I’m not sure if we’re going to reach our goal of 40,000 dollars. I’m hopeful that we will be able to pull through, but I doubt it’ll happen to be completely honest,” Castillo said.

Student Government invests time and energy into preparing for MAD Week, however, many students are not aware of the extent that their work contributes to school spirit.

“I wish people knew how far in advance we prepare for these things. We have been planning our MAD week since the summertime. The leaders (Will Mirenda, Aidan McGinty, Andrea Lee, Marisa Brake and Rielley McNeill) and I have been doing meetings to plan out how the year would go. Student Government actually plays an incredibly large role in MAD week and a lot of other events at the school. I wish students would put out as much effort as we do for the events we plan,” Castillo said.

MAD Week has seen success in the past, and Student Government is largely to thank for this. Save the Rainforest!