But there are moments, like that one, when it can actually rock.

Then Principal Gupta asked if there was any outstanding business, and I threw my arm into the air.

Principal Gupta saw me raise my hand. I know she did.

But she totally ignored me, and called on some freshman’s mother who wanted to know why the school wasn’t doing more to prepare students for the SATs.

She went on to ignore me until she’d answered everyone else’s questions. I can’t really say that this shows the kind of commitment to youth-oriented issues I’d like to see in my educators, but who am I to complain? Just the president of the student council, is all.

Which is why, after Principal Gupta finally called on me, I saw a lot of parents gathering their Gucci briefcases and Zabar’s shopping bags and getting ready to leave. Because who wants to listen to the president of the student council?

“Um, hi,” I said, uncomfortably aware of the number of gazes—even if they were only half listening—on me. I may be a princess, and all, but I’m still not used to the whole public-speaking thing, despite Grandmère’s best efforts. “I’ve been asked by a number of AEHS students to address the Parent Teacher Association on the issue of our current physical education curriculum, specifically its emphasis on competitive sports. We feel that spending six weeks learning the finer points of volleyball is a waste of our time and our parents’ money. We would prefer our physical education funds be spent on physical education that is just that: education about our physical well-being. We’d like the gymnasium to be converted to an actual fitness center, with weight-training equipment and stationary bikes for spin classes, as well as space for Pilates and t’ai chi. And for our physical education instructor to act as both a personal trainer and health specialist, who will work with each student individually to create a personal workout and health program targeted to their specific health needs, whether they be weight loss, increase in muscle tone, stress reduction, or simply improved overall health. As you can see”—I pulled out a pile of paper I’d been keeping in my backpack, and began passing the sheets around—“we’ve assessed the overall costs involved in implementing this kind of health program, and found that it is much more cost-efficient than our current physical education curriculum, if you take into account the staggering amount of money you’ll be paying to your child’s physicians for treatment of juvenile onset diabetes, asthma, high blood pressure, and the many other dangerous health conditions caused by obesity.”

This information was not met with the kind of enthusiastic response we—meaning my fellow student council members, Lilly, Tina, Ling Su, and I—had been hoping for. Parents, I noted, tended to look heavenward, and Principal Gupta glanced at her watch.

“Thank you for this, Mia,” she said, holding up the copy of the cost breakdown I’d given her. “But I’m afraid what you’re proposing would be far too cost-prohibitive for us at this time—”