Atlanta fourth grader Christian Brooks wins class representative position at Benteen Elementary
As the next generation of leaders begins charting their political paths, one Atlanta fourth grader is already making waves in the classroom — and online.
Christian Brooks was campaigning for student council vice president at Benteen Elementary School when his father posted his campaign speech on social media. That's when the election took an unexpected turn.
"I didn't win vice president," Brooks said. "What was even cooler was that the fourth grade trusted me so much that they literally wrote me into office."
School leaders say excitement has been growing around student council elections after bringing them back this year. The goal, according to Benteen Elementary officials, is to help young candidates build confidence and find their voices.
Brooks certainly made an impression. Not only did classmates write him in as class representative, but he received the most write-in votes for the position.
Now in office, he's wasting no time setting his priorities.
"Make the playground more safe," he said, adding that he also wants to make learning more fun and push for improvements to the cafeteria menu. "We already have a choice of cookies, but it's not every day…"
His father, Alfred "Shivy" Brooks II, says the biggest point of pride wasn't the win but how his son handled the loss of the vice president race.
"I'm mostly proud of how he handled not getting the outcome of what he was looking for," Brooks said. "Our resilience in what some people might perceive as failure or an undesired outcome is really the measure of who we are as people."
Principal Gerard Latimore agrees, noting Christian's natural ability to connect with others.
"When I became principal — and keep in mind this is my first year at Benteen — Christian was one of the first kids I met," Latimore said. "It seemed like he was giving me a campaign speech then about what he wanted to change in fourth grade."
Brooks is already gearing up for what comes next. He plans to expand his campaign efforts next year and has his sights set on a bigger role.
"Definitely to campaign a lot, lot more," he said. "I think I'm going to go class to class next year — even in the primary — because that's where I can get it easiest because that's where there are more grades down there."
With annual elections now in place, Brooks says he plans to run for student council president when he reaches fifth grade.
The race may have just begun, but his classmates — and the community — will be watching.