Student Government elects a new president

Student Government Association (SGA) held elections for new leadership positions from April 16 to April 18. Elections determined who would fill the spots on SGA for the upcoming year.

Tate Schlichting was elected to be the new student body president, alongside vice president Jackie Lee. Schlichting shared some future plans and hopes for the upcoming year; and how he wants to continue to make the UW-River Falls campus a place where student needs are heard.

Schlichting is a junior, heading into his fourth year at UWRF. His major is Political Science with a Criminology minor. Schlichting will be graduating after his fourth year. “I ran because I feel like I still have enough time left on campus to make UWRF a better place for future students, this is a truly great campus, but there will always be room for improvement in every great thing,” Schlichting said.

As president of SGA, Schlichting will lead the rest of the elected council in making improvements on campus. Over the past year, Schlichting formerly held the title of vice president of SGA, and wants to continue to work as a leader on campus.

“A lot of awesome things are in the works [for next year]. Rodli will be opening, a new strategic plan will be created and implemented, and one of my favorites, an advising center is being seriously looked at and considered to help students find their path here in college in both life and academics,” said Schlichting.

One of SGA’s main goals for next year is to create a better communication with students. SGA represents the wants and needs of the students, and Schlichting expressed that he wants to make it easier for students to express their opinions. He said, “Jackie Lee, the vice president, and I plan to open up Student Government President and vice president emails so students can more easily reach out to us. 

In addition to these changes, Schlichting wants to work on improvements within Student Government Association. He said, “The biggest things I will be working on are more in house revisions to the Student Government. We have a lot of work to do to get on the right track, and I believe that the last administration headed by President Rosie Pechous did a lot of great work, and that work needs to continue so the Student Government can be the most effective voice of the students it can be.”

“The one thing I would want students to know on campus is that I want to hear from them, I want to know what the students think needs to be implemented, done better, is being done well, really anything. Feedback any student wants to give me would be great,” said Schlichting.

By creating a great environment from several aspects at UWRF, Schlichting believes that SGA will be a voice for all students as effectively as possible.