Bois D’Arc student Thornton elected Junior Beta state president

Bois D’Arc Elementary student Cash Thornton has just been elected the state president of Junior Beta Club. Beta Club is an organization for students focused on leadership and excellence in academics. The election process, which took place March 2 in Branson at this year’s state convention, entailed a speech, a small campaigning session, a question-and-answer section and a skit, all in front of a large crowd. That can put a lot of pressure on a fourth grader. But Cash said that after his initial nerves, it was no problem.
“I felt better because I already knew what I was going to say,” he said.
The competition was fierce too, when Cash arrived, there were already multiple signs promoting another campaign.
 “There were cars everywhere that said her name and to vote for her,” Cash added.

Once Cash was on the stage, he was given a bowl of questions to draw from, after which he was only given a minute to prepare his response. This was the most nerve-wracking part for him.
“The question made me nervous, and I stumbled a little bit on that,” he said.
 
Thanks to his public speaking skills, Cash will now be able to bring Bois D’Arc’s Junior Beta Chapter to national convention. In addition to that, he will also be allowed to go to the National Beta Leadership Camp in Tennessee, where newly-elected state sponsor Lindsay Buckley, Bois D’Arc’s BETA sponsor and librarian with the Ash Grove School District, will accompany him, welcome news for Cash.
“It made me feel better when I found out that I won,” he said, “We’ll be doing a lot of stuff together.”
Being the president is not without its responsibilities though, Cash will have to attend other conventions to see how they function and oversee the awards that are presented at the next state Beta convention, but more importantly, this is an opportunity to learn.
 “When I get older and I want to still be a part of it, I'll know what's going on.”