Lynbrook High School students got a firsthand look at the democratic process on Oct. 8, casting ballots on official voting machines as part of their student government elections.
The election was made possible through a $2,000 New York State United Teachers Civic Readiness Grant secured through a collaboration between social studies teacher and student government adviser Nicole DiBenedetto and Lynbrook Teachers Association President Craig Kirchenberg.
Working with the Nassau County Board of Elections, the school replaced the Microsoft Forms previously used for class officer elections with official ballots, electronic poll books and the same type of voting machines used in public elections.
“A pretty cool thing happened today,” Kirchenberg wrote in an email. “High school students got to vote in an authentic election. It was a student government election, but it was conducted in conjunction with the Board of Elections on real voting machines with real ballots.”
The initiative was designed to familiarize students with the electoral process before they become eligible to vote.
Students voted for their respective class officers, including president, vice president, secretary and treasurer, with members of the 2026-27 Lynbrook High School Student Government SLATE helping coordinate the process.
Principal Matthew Sarosy emphasized the educational value of the experience.
“This initiative gives our students the opportunity to move beyond learning about civic engagement in the classroom and experience it firsthand,” Sarosy said at first discussion of the grant.
“I hope they’ll see what it looks like to be an active citizen,” DiBenedetto said ahead of the election. “By having every student vote during their social studies classes and having kids campaign more, there will be more excitement and buzz around it.”
