By Kenzi Erxleben, Guest Writer
For the second year in a row, the Student Government Association presidential ballot will list only one candidate, who is running unopposed.
And for the second year in a row, that candidate is Alondra Valle, a junior who also served as SGA president this year.
Voting in the SGA election begins at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, when students will receive a link via email leading them to an online ballot. Voting ends at noon on April 11, and election winners will be introduced the following day at Jet Friday.
Valle will be elected along with vice presidential candidate Gabe Trevino, junior. She then will appoint the remainder of the executive team, and she’s chosen sophomore Nathan Galicia as treasurer and freshman Grace Long as secretary.
Even though Valle is running unopposed, students are still asked to vote in the election.
“While there would be no competition, [voting] does formalize the person’s interest in continuing with their intention to fill a seat,” SGA adviser Dr. Andi Giesen said.
Valle has been in SGA for the past three years and also participated in her high school student council. Galicia, a sophomore, has served as an at-large senator with SGA, but the other two candidates are new to the association.
“Being in a room filled with diverse people is my favorite part about (SGA) because we all come together with one similarity, which is just (SGA),” Valle said.
Valle said that her goals for her second term are to host more events and update SGA’s constitution and bylaws, but she plans to further discuss goals with the whole body to better identify the group’s aspirations. Valle emphasized the importance of teamwork, collaboration and diverse conversation.
During her current term, Valle said, her focus was on diversity, accountability and leading SGA to transform society. She said she also prioritizes communication with the student body.
Throughout her first term, Valle oversaw and passed resolutions and bills that brought updated security cameras to campus, provided access to life-saving drugs and approved independently sponsored events. Valle encouraged the senators to attend as many on-campus events as possible to convey SGA’s support.
Giesen said that SGA did not have enough people run for senate positions this year to get the body to its full capacity, but she hopes it will get there next year.. She said that when more student leaders participate in SGA, more creative ideas and improvements result. She encourages any Newman student interested in joining the group to attend the SGA general meetings at noon on Tuesdays in the Alumni Reception Center.
“We want to support leaders developing their leadership skills,” Giesen said.
Those elected as SGA senators must maintain a 2.5 GPA, and those on the leadership team must maintain a 3.0 GPA. SGA members receive varying amounts of scholarship money, starting at $50 a semester for senators and higher for other roles within SGA.
Newman’s SGA is in charge of a pot of money that it allocates to address concerns on campus and help clubs operate. And those who serve in SGA are able to see their leadership skills grow, Giesen said.
“We don’t expect people to come in at their top performance; we expect them to come in willing to learn — willing to get better,” she said.
PHOTO: Courtesy photo, SGA
