Elisavet “Ellie” Mendez, a fifth-grade student at Monroe Elementary School, is Connecticut’s Kid Governor for 2023.
She was sworn into office Friday in Hartford for her one-year term.
Her platform is “express and address your feelings,” working to improve children’s mental health in the classroom.
“I care so much because, through my past experiences, I have anxiety. Even ‘til this day now I still do, and I don’t want kids to go through the same way I did, so I really hope that kids can learn how to cope with anxiety,” Mendez said.
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She will spend the year learning about state government and making a difference in students’ lives.
There were seven final candidates for kid governor and thousands of Connecticut fifth graders voted in November.
The six other finalists will be her cabinet members.
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They talked about causes they are passionate about, including literacy, access to healthy food and addressing bullying and littering.
"This is my first time meeting them, and I love all their campaign videos. I know that they can still make a difference," Mendez said.
Mendez, Connecticut’s eighth kid governor, said she looks most forward to going to the Capitol and ensuring her peers have the right support.
One way she plans to take action is her "tap out light station," a designated space in classrooms for students to take a break, calm down and refocus.
"If a student is feeling anxiety or some form of sadness that's not allowing them to concentrate, they can easily go over, tap the light red, indicating that they need a moment right now. They can sit down and listen to zen music. Then they can tap the light green, indicating they have reset and go back to what they were doing," said Mendez.
Around the country, other states are following Connecticut's lead and implementing a kid governor program of their own.
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