ARLINGTON — In the seven years that she’s delivered the annual State of the District addresses for Arlington’s schools, superintendent Kristine McDuffy has asserted that their students are their primary priority, but on Jan. 29, she made it more official.

Haller Middle School seventh-grader Kirahy Meyers, Post Middle School eighth-grader T.J. Roach, Arlington High School junior Sarai Munoz and senior Connor Ghirardo joined Weston High School senior Jenessa Nissen as the “Panel of Experts” during McDuffy’s address, to answer questions about conditions in the schools.

While Munoz and Ghirardo are student members of the Arlington school board, the other students were recommended by their principals.

When asked how safe they feel in their schools, Munoz admitted to initial apprehension after the shooting at Marysville-Pilchuck High School last fall, but noted that the presence of the school resource officer quelled those fears.

“Our school is probably the safest place in Arlington, except for the police station,” Munoz said.

Roach cited the number of safety drills his school conducts, while Meyers has never felt intimated by physical violence, or even social pressures.

“I’ve never felt put down,” Meyers said. “When I’ve asked questions, I’ve never had anyone make me feel stupid for it.”

When they discussed their favorite teachers, Ghirardo credited his one of teachers with helping him learn “how not to give up” during tough times, while Munoz praised one of her teachers for encouraging students to ask “deeper questions” from the first day of class forward.

As to whether school has prepared them sufficiently, Ghirardo is nervous in spite of being accepted into Stanford University, but he agreed that he was “prepared enough.”

When asked what they would do if they were superintendent, or principal of their school, Roach called for more public displays of appreciation for often unsung “hard workers” like janitors and cafeteria staff, while Meyers alluded to research he’d consulted on adolescent sleep patterns.

“As they get older, teenagers are naturally inclined to go to bed later and wake up later, so I’d adjust the start times for middle school and high school,” Meyers said. “It would help students’ grades, especially in their first-period classes.”

Nissen would seek to lessen student distractions by making class sizes smaller, while Munoz would urge AHS students to attend more middle school band performances, since they’re hosted by the Byrnes Performing Arts Center that’s attached to the high school.

McDuffy noted that she couldn’t have all 5,452 students in the district address her audience, but she touted her Panel of Experts as “incredible kids” and proof that “the future is in good hands.”