She’s the Black Student Union president at Del Oro High. This year’s student representative on the Kern High School District’s Board of Trustees. A former ASB president. Founder of the district’s first majorette team, the Sunett’z. You name it, she’s probably done it – or is about to do it. Her name? Jalynn Hammond.
Hammond, a senior, has arguably been one of the most influential students during her three years at Del Oro. Not only has she worked hard for the Suns community, she also works to improve the greater Bakersfield community. Recently, she created a community service group called Students for a Change.
Why does she do all this? Hamond said that someone influential once told her to be the change she wanted to see in the world. That led her to realize there was a lot of change she wanted to see in the community, so she began to socialize with people who could help her make those changes.
“So all in all, I guess I just have to continue to be the change I wanna see,” Hammond said.
She was also part of the Del Oro Peer Advocacy Center (DPAC) as a mentor. DPAC mentors help students who may be falling behind on their school work or who may just need the little extra push to succeed academically.
Hammond said her high school life has been full of wonderful memories of her and her friends.
“A couple of my favorite memories would have to involve any of the clubs I was in, like the Black Student Union,” she said. “I think I really found my place and my belonging in that, and knew who I wanted to be as a Black woman.
“I had some really great times, not even with just the Del Oro girls but the Mira Monte girls too.”
Arguably, Hammond’s best high school moment was the day she was sworn in as student representative for the KHSD’s Board of Trustees.
Hammond was sworn in as the district’s third-ever student representative on Aug. 5, 2024. It was a position she temporarily vacated, along with her title of ASB president, after she was involved in a disagreement in late August with some parents over a Sunnet’z performance.
Hammond said she credits her faith in God as the reason she withstood all the trials she endured this school year.
“I have a really good relationship with God, and it was just learning to trust God in those moments, truth be told,” she said. “I didn’t want to leave ASB. I didn’t want to leave the majorettes. But during that time I had to do what was right for me in those moments.”
A few weeks after giving up her spot on the Board of Trustees, Hammond was reinstated and will finish her term in early June. Unfortunately, Hammond said, she won’t be able to attend her final Board of Trustees meeting as she will be working on moving to Houston. This fall, Hammond will be a freshman at Texas Southern University, one of the nation’s historically black colleges and universities.
But June is still weeks away, there’s still plenty of time for Hammond to reflect on her experiences at Del Oro. Hammond said two of the teachers she really enjoyed at Del Oro were Olive Garrison and Hannah Richert.
“Since I’ve been at Del Oro, hands down the first teacher that ever caught my eye and gave me a safe space was Garrison,” Hammond said. “Garrison is a phenomenal teacher regardless of what they teach, but just a great person to have a conversation with.”
Hammond added that Richert is the one who inspired her interests in political science and government.
“I’m so big on politics now because I took her class last semester,” Hammond said. “I thought last semester I wanted to major in Psychology and I realized I did not want to do that for the rest of my life. So Mrs. Richert is a good teacher.”
Richert said she was glad that Hammond got to be the first Del Oro student to be a student board trustee.
“It made me feel very proud when we were at the board meeting and Jalynn was sworn in,” Richert said. “I love that this board position exists for students, and knowing that one of our seniors got to be the third student board member is very exciting.
“I love that Jalynn gets to be a voice for her peers and that she gets to use her agency to stand up for what she and other students believe in.”
On March 27, Hammond was honored as Youth of the Year by the Bakersfield NAACP chapter for her work in the community. Hammond said the award is given to someone who dedicates themselves to giving students a voice in the community. It’s an award that Hammond has shown she has earned with the creation of the Students for Change community service group.
A day after Hammond received the NAACP award, Students for Change hosted an event for students at Sequoia Middle School who were interested in leadership.
“Some kids may act tough, but we took the toughness out of them and they got to act like a kid for once,” said Naomi McGee, a freshman at Del Oro. “The kids were really happy.”
For Hammond, happiness comes through giving back to her community. She said some of her post-college plans include running as a state senator. But first, high school graduation looms.
“I personally want to thank my Del Oro family for just giving me a better outlook on life [and] giving me a better perspective of knowing God, no matter where I came from,” Hammond said. “Who I was when I got here wasn’t going to be the person I was going to leave as.”
