Thursday, October 1, 2026
We talk a lot about students in education. We talk about their test scores, their attendance rates, their graduation numbers. We analyze data, debate curriculum, and argue over policy, often with great passion and conviction.
But how often do we actually talk to them?
I have spent the vast majority of my career in public education, and I can tell you with certainty: The most important information I have ever received about what is happening in our schools hasn’t come from a spreadsheet. It has come from students sitting across a table from me, willing to tell me the truth.
That’s why I believe, without reservation, that student voice must be at the center of how we make decisions in our schools.
This isn’t a feel-good idea. It isn’t a box to check or a public relations strategy. It is sound educational practice. Research consistently shows that students who feel heard are more engaged, more likely to stay in school, and more likely to thrive academically. When young people know that the adults around them are genuinely listening, something powerful happens: They begin to invest in the institution that is investing in them.
In the Valley Stream Central High School District, student voice is not an afterthought. It is a priority. Recently I sat down with our English as a New Language students. These young people carry the extraordinary weight of navigating a new country, a new language and a new school system all at the same time. I wanted to hear from them directly. Are you supported? Do you feel seen? What do we need to do better?
Those conversations were not comfortable. They were not meant to be. Real listening never is. But they were among the most valuable hours I have spent as superintendent, because they reminded me of something no educator must ever forget: Our students are not passive recipients of the decisions we make. They are the living, breathing consequence of every policy, every budget line, every hire we make. They deserve a seat at the table.
I am also deeply aware that student voice cannot be selective. We can’t listen only when students confirm what we already believe, and tune out when they challenge us. That isn’t listening; that is performance. True advocacy for student voice means creating the structures, the culture and the trust that allow students to speak honestly, and then having the courage to act on what we hear.
This is especially urgent for our most vulnerable students. These include our English language learners, students with disabilities and those living in poverty. These are the young people whose voices are most often drowned out in public debate, and most often left out of the policy decisions that affect them most. If we’re serious about equity in our schools, then we must be serious about hearing from them.
To my fellow superintendents and school board members across this region, I offer this challenge: Before your next policy decision, before your next budget vote, before your next curriculum adoption, ask a student. Not a focus group. Not a survey. Have a real conversation, with a real young person, about what their school day actually looks and feels like.
You may be surprised by what you hear. You will certainly be better for it.
Our students are not the future of this community. They are the present. It’s time we started governing like we believe that.
Wayne R. Loper, Ed.D., is superintendent of the Valley Stream Central High School District.
