First year students vying for class cabinet positions delivered speeches to their peers Monday night at the weekly Student Government Association (SGA) meeting.
Student body president, Joanna Friesen ‘17, said votes for candidates were conducted via email, beginning on Tuesday September 27 and ended on September 28.
Skylar Hillman and James Argot each won their right to office by default. Hillman will assume the position of class treasurer and Argot will take office as class secretary. Argot cited a need for greater transparency, and detailed his plan to work with SGA to make meeting minutes more accessible, “possibly through a public Google Doc.”
No one ran for class historian, despite SGA vice president Daniel Merriam’s (‘17) calls for a volunteer for this “very important” position.
Celina Tijerina and Micah Modesto ran for class social chair. Tongue in cheek, Modesto stated she’d “cherish” the office.
The men’s chaplain campaign featured two candidates as well. Christian Arber, a communication and theology double major, cited his camp ministry as a strong qualification for the job. His competitor Juwan Moore urged his classmates not to vote for himself, but to “vote for whoever the Holy Spirit is convicting you to vote.”
“God is calling this generation to courageous care and radical love,” Moore stated in his speech.
Five candidates were slated for the women’s chaplaincy position. Kyla Nies, Emily Allen, Becca Loomis, Olivia Flint, and Abby Nayler each expressed their passion for Houghton’s mission, and their desire to serve their classmates’ spiritual needs. Loomis stated, “I love that we have so many spiritual events at Houghton, but I think sometimes they can make us spiritually numb. We need a revival.” Loomis proposed a discipleship and accountability group to launch said revival. Likewise, Allen said, “I want to play a part in leading our growth as a community.”
Madison Collins and Nathan Trouten ran for vice president. Trouten emphasized that, as an international student and an athlete, he feels especially qualified to serve these two groups in particular. He also promised to work closely with the president and treasurer to ensure the class cabinet stays within its budget. Collins expressed her desire to serve her classmates rather than “benefit from the efforts of others” all four years.
The speeches culminated with the presidential candidates. Jonathan Libby said his class was a group of diverse, high achievers, and “the challenges of diversity create leaders.” With high hopes for his classmates, he promised to be their “number one supporter” should he be elected.
Hannah Sievers highlighted her extensive experience in student leadership throughout her high school career. She was a member of “Sources of Strength,” a suicide prevention group. Sievers also participated in theatre, Student Council, and the yearbook club. She said she played an instrumental role in making the yearbook club into a credited class at her high school.
At the close of the candidate speeches, Merriam encouraged the first year students to remain involved, regardless of the election results. “You guys are the future of this college,”he said. “Stay involved, and carry on the Houghton legacy.”