The man behind the events, fundraising, Kennedy Prom 2024 and much more is Senior Class President Safal Bhattarai. He does it all. 

“I’ve had to really work,” Bhattarai said. “There’s a lot of background stuff with me sending emails, sitting in meetings, talking, planning and getting everything done. It’s mainly all the logistical stuff that not everyone will see”

However, his main focus this year was to see through fundraising.

“I helped organize and set up the fundraiser with Waypoint that had the teachers kissing cows, it was all my idea,” Bhattarai said. “We didn’t reach the fundraising goals that we wanted but we still raised a good amount of money to help pay towards a good cause.”

Prom 2024 has been another fundraising target for the senior class and Bhattarai focused his efforts to help reduce ticket prices for everyone.

“We reached what we needed and I’m fairly happy to say that our [prom] ticket prices are low because of all our fundraising,” Bhattarai said. “30 dollars for prom added to 10 dollars for post prom, so 40 dollars total for a package.”

Bhattarai has also set a priority on giving students volunteer opportunities throughout the year to help students succeed.

“I want to see everyone with the blue community service chords at graduation,” Bhattarai said. “April 22, and hopefully some other days that week, we’re planning on doing another thing with Waypoint with Kids Point. Having another senior project where we go out and volunteer during the day at their daycare.”

In his time on class council, Bhattarai also focused on hearing and acting on the voice of the people.

“I started this council with very Democratic ideas, wanting to get the ideas and input heavily from the people and I feel like I’ve done that fairly well,” Bhattarai said. “I created the prom committee [for the] first time ever and had students be able to give input as well as council members.”

Besides the responsibilities of being class president, Bhattarai is still a student. Balancing his work and school has been stressful at times, but his optimism shines through.

“As we get closer to graduation [my stress levels] are a little bit on the rise cause I have to give the speech and I have to be up on stage in front of over a thousand people on TV and everything as well,” Bhattarai said. “It’s a little nerve-racking, but I feel like I’m prepared for that.”

Another goal of Bhattarai’s was to make lasting memories with his friends before graduation and he feels he’s accomplished that.

“My primary friend group, we have been doing a lot of stuff. Just a few weeks ago we went out and spent a couple days in Wisconsin and that was pretty fun,” Bhattarai said.

 As graduation nears and high school comes to an end, Bhattarai looks to the future.

“One thing I do every summer is milkshake Mondays,” Bhattarai said. “Every Monday I like to reach out to a friend over the summer and go get milkshakes with them and catch up, see how their summers have been.”

Though a fun tradition, Bhattarai said this might be his last.

“People are gonna be moving out, going to college and whatnot,” Bhattarai said. “I’m going into the military by the end of the summer so definitely going to be my last milkshake Monday.”

When thinking on his post-secondary education plans, Bhattarai had a lot of options to think about.

“Originally I was thinking law school. I work with the police department so you know that’s also an option, just going straight into the police force,” Bhattarai said. “I was getting my EMT, so I was considering just going a year in as an EMT, then getting my paramedics after that. Then I kind of settled down on getting a Public Policy major and a minor in Emergency Management.”

The class president’s decision was a hard one but through a new Army recruitment method, Bhattarai said his decision was made a lot simpler.

“Paying for college isn’t that big of a deal but still, just to make it easier, the military definitely helps towards getting that,” Bhattarai said. “It wasn’t just like a me decision, my friends and I all decided we were enlisting and joining together through the Buddy Program.”

The Army Recruitment website describes the Buddy Program as guaranteeing recruits attend basic and individual training with their friends or family. Then, recruits are assigned their first duty station together after graduation.

“I’d be with my friends all three to four years that I’m in the military and the benefits kinda outweigh the negatives,” Bhattarai said. “I get healthcare, housing and education all paid for, for not a whole lot.”

Bhattarai will be joining the Army as an active service member in late summer.