Have you ever gotten assigned a big essay right after you turned in another one and felt like you needed more time to get feedback? Well thanks to a new bill Student Legislature passed this year, this situation will never happen to you again.

Legislature is a group made up of 17 students and 17 faculty that is in charge of passing bills to amend the student handbook. The group meets during both X-blocks every other week and has a large role in making decisions that affect all students and faculty at the school.

Junior Claire Gallion, School Committee Representative, said that the legislature has more power than people think.

“A lot of people think that we don’t do a lot, that we just sort of meet and talk about nothing,” Gallion said. “But we edit rules in the handbook that affect students everyday, so I think that we play a quiet, but large role.”

This year, the group has passed four bills and Gallion said there are many others in the works. Sophomore Dan Hernan is currently drafting a grade rounding bill and said that he has learned a lot during the process.

“It is pretty unique to a high school experience to be able to change the way your high school runs,” Hernan said. “Right now, I’m in the final stages of drafting a bill which came from a friend complaining that some teachers don’t round grades, so I got to see how I can make a difference first hand.”

Gallion says that her favorite part of being on legislature is being able to stand up for her fellow students.

“I think a lot of students feel voiceless because our school is so large, so it’s really nice to be able to amplify their voice in some way,” Gallion said. “It is just so amazing to directly have an impact on students and connect with them in a way that administration can’t really.”

Elections for sophomores, juniors, and seniors took place last spring, while freshman elections will be this fall. Gallion says there are no strict requirements and she encourages anybody interested in student government to run.

“As long as you care about the school and care about making a difference, that is all that matters. Everybody at our school, no matter who you are or what you like, has something valuable to put on the table,” Gallion said.

Faculty Liaison Jen Martin, who coordinates the branches of student government, says that even if students are not on Legislature, they can still use their representatives to address problems they face.

“If you are not happy about something, you have to tell people instead of doing nothing,” Martin said. “I want kids to feel like they can go to our website to get the list of everyone that represents them and tell them their problem. You can’t just sit out and say you wish you could change the school. You need to get involved.”