After two weeks of prepping and campaigning, the Spring Hill College Student Government Association (SGA) 2019 presidential and vice presidential elections resulted in juniors Cade Dernlan and Griffin Morgan winning as president and vice president.
Both elected members agreed on their feelings and concerns about being new members of the SGA team, Vice President-elect Morgan said, “We know there will be a learning curve, but I think we are both ready for that challenge.”
The two of them expressed their determination for crossing the bridge to learning the ropes of the job. Dernlan explained that any of their concerns has become motivation to fulfill their roles and platform, adding, “I’m excited to encounter challenges that we have yet to consider and we are looking forward to finding new and innovative ways to tackle those challenges.”
When questioned about how they plan on achieving a better relationship with the administration, Dernlan said, “We look forward to collaborating with Kevin Abel (Vice President of Student Affairs). But really, we want to ensure that students and faculty are both heard by the administration.” Dernlan explained his intentions to establish better relationships with multiple school programs in his hopes to “ensure that all organizations on campus operate in a more synergetic fashion.”
The two elects hope to fulfill their progressive platform by implementing new initiatives, Morgan proceeded to explain, “The most passionate thing for us is the student mentorship program. We really think it will help out and it’s a pretty endemic problem we have here.” Looking into the future, after the 2019 term concludes, the elected candidates would like to see increased campus involvement, on-campus enrollment and higher retention rates.
During the upcoming weeks, the new cabinet will shadow under the present SGA cabinet. Dernlan and Morgan elaborated on their chosen cabinet for the new term, emphasizing that their cabinet will include a diverse group of experienced individuals of different involvements. Dernlan said, “We are excited to introduce a cabinet that not only boasts prior SGA experience, but that also boasts individuals who have gone above and beyond in leadership positions on this campus.”
As April 4 approaches for Inauguration, the new term will kick into gear with the newly elected cabinet and senate members.
The SGA senate election campaigning will pick up on March 18. For more information on SGA, visit the Instagram page @shcsga or the Spring Hill College Student Government Association Facebook page.