After a short campaign, the Washburn Student Government Association announces the winners for the president and vice president in the upcoming academic year.
Students, faculty and staff gathered in the Memorial Union March 7 at noon to hear the announcement. George Burdick and Bella Wood were elected president and vice president of WSGA. The two were elected with 76.3% of the votes.
JuliAnn Mazachek, Washburn University’s president, announced and welcomed the winners into their new positions.
“Some of you don’t know, but I’ve worked pretty closely with George and I’ve known Bella for a while…so I’m excited about being able to work with them,” Mazachek said.
The gavel will officially change hands from Antonio Martinez, WSGA president, and Tevin Asamoah, vice president, April 10.
The new student body representatives took the platform to share a few words about themselves.
Burdick expressed his thankfulness for being at Washburn and the effect the university has had on his academics.
“Before coming to this institution, my GPA wasn’t up to my standards, my involvement with my community was little to none and my social life was, to be honest, non-existent,” Burdick said.
After high school, Burdick decided to focus on his studies and join organizations to grow and develop.
“I did this because I knew this,” Burdick said,” that learning at a college is not exclusive to the classroom, and that learners, when united in activities and discourse, are performing and learning at their best.”
Through his time at Washburn, Burdick found a few problems going unaddressed and sought to make an impact within the Washburn community.
Wood described choosing Washburn because of the community and connections. She, too, became heavily involved at Washburn.
Wood was excited at the opportunity to enact change and be a representative of the student body.
The two ended their speech with the promise of their administration.
“We promise an administration that will bring change, an administration that reinvigorates campus vibrancy and encourages and welcomes all to the table because we know that good government is representative of all…” Wood said.
They also promised that their cabinet will include people who are dedicated, professional and engaging. They seek to enact policies to help the senators become educated, connected and involved. Lastly, the two promised to employ chairs who are hard-working, ethical and focused on the needs of students.
In their final statements, the new president and vice president thanked everyone for putting their trust in them for these positions and stressed the point of togetherness.
“I know that together, we can ensure that every voice is heard and that the job gets done. I know that together, we can make it through the coming challenges and not just survive but thrive. I know that together, we can build a campus not for ourselves alone,” Burdick said.
Ending the short event, the newly elected senators were announced:
– Colton Cattor.
– Dante Jordan.
– Ryan Durst.
– Trevor Ottman.
– Tiana Smith.
– Kate Coulter.
– Emma Teply.
– Rene Cabrera.
– Taylor Redington.
– Maggie Bourell.
– Elvia Nino-Elliott.
– Jd Pulgarin-Castillo.
– Nick Llyod.
– Cameron Billquist.
Edited by Jayme Thompson and Jeremy Ford
