1. Use clear and engaging language. Whether you are speaking to the entire school or to a smaller classroom, you want your audience to be engaged and interested in what you are talking about. What looks good on paper may not sound as compelling when read out loud. Don’t: Use unnecessarily long words or complicated phrasing. e.g.“It has come to my attention that the students and faculty members of this institution are disenchanted with the quality of food served within the cafeteria. I am determined to ameliorate our cafeteria offerings.” Do: Use a more conversational style when speaking, and make sure your audience can relate to the topic of your speech. e.g. “No one likes tasteless hamburgers and frozen fries, right? A lot of you have been complaining about the lunches served at Washington High, and as your class president, I’ll make sure to resolve this issue.” 2. Build a rapport with your audience. Remember that as president, you are a representative of the class body. You are one of them and you speak on their behalf, so it’s important to demonstrate that you care about their experiences and expectations. Don’t: Use “I” excessively or talk only about yourself. e.g. “I am passionate about improving school nutrition. Last year I served as a student body spokesperson and petitioned the school board to include a healthy option with every meal.” Do: Use “we” and focus on shared experiences. e.g. “I know that we are all passionate about improving school nutrition. Remember when there were no fruits or vegetables at lunch? It was with your support and encouragement that I successfully petitioned the school board to offer healthier lunch options for all of us. 3. Focus your speech and tell a story. Build your speech around a specific topic and don’t include unrelated topics. If you are writing a campaign speech, focus on a very broad theme (e.g. how to make the school a better place) and make sure all the examples you give relate to this problem. A graduation speech should be relevant to the overall experience of the student body. Don’t: Include long lists of separate, unrelated topics. e.g. “As class president, I will put more tables in the cafeteria, cut back on long lines at the food stations, and improve the lunchtime menus. Do: Create a narrative in which you address several topics that all relate to a central theme. e.g. “The Washington High cafeteria has great potential to be a unique space, open and welcoming to students from all four years and with different interests and passions. Together, we will add more tables so that everyone has a place to sit. Together, we will work on food station efficiency, so that we can all eat at the same time. Together, we will demand healthy and varied menus, so that we can finally look forward to lunch.”