by Erin Turner | Apr 6, 2015 | News Slider
From water bottle stations, to the cost of summer tuition at Lipscomb, the 2015-2016 Student Government Association candidates covered a variety of topics at the Presidential Debate Monday night in Shamblin Theater. Moderator Madeline Smith opened up the night by asking the senatorial candidates funny questions that were Tweeted out by audience members. Vice Presidential candidates Ezra Fritz, Lauren Gardiner, Hannah Passamonte, Jackson Smith and David Villacorta took the stage to share their ideas for the coming school year. The presidential portion of the debate began with a series of questions. Q: “If you could implement one major policy change at Lipscomb what would it be? A: Presidential candidate Julia Allen said she would change the way that tuition works. “I would like to see fixed tuition — for Lipscomb students to be able to stay for all four years,” Allen said. A: Presidential candidate Margaret Rox said she would also like to see a tuition lock for current students. “If we can’t have a tuition lock, I would at least like to see people’s scholarship increase with the tuition,” Rox said. While tuition increases each each, Rox said that scholarships don’t. She said that it would be more fair for scholarships to follow the same trend as rising tuition. A: Presidential candidate Jordan Beale said she is passionate about Lipscomb’s community, and she said she believes housing is a big part of the community. “I’d really like to see some greater opportunities for upperclassmen here on campus — maybe have more open dorm hours, a little bit more autonomy on those choices, a little bit more openness to moving off campus,” Beale said. Q: “What...
by Erin Turner | Apr 4, 2015 | Opinion
Open Letter to the Student Body: My name is Margaret Rox, and I’m running for President of SGA for the 2015-2016 school year. I am a junior Mechanical Engineering major from Chattanooga, Tennessee. Qualifications: I have been on Student Government Association since my freshman year. Three years of being on SGA has taught me a lot about how this organization works and how the school’s administration runs. I also feel like I really understand the needs of the student body and how I can improve communication between us and the administration. A few things I have accomplished during my time on SGA include getting straws in the cafeteria and helping to get a printer in Ezell. This year on the academic committee, I have been working with other members on potentially making internships free for students during the summer (no tuition required), organizing the SGA blood drive and installing more water bottle refilling stations, like the ones in Swang and the SAC. If Elected: I’m not going to make any promises I can’t keep. For example, parking is not something SGA or the student body can control. I can’t promise more parking spots. I can promise communication about the students’ need for parking (as always). This year, Drew has worked a lot with the administration on getting us a sand volleyball court. This is the kind of action a president can take, and should take. If elected, I promise to strive for more developments on campus like this. The student body needs someone advocating for them who is not just interested in donor funding, but also interested in what’s...
by Erin Turner | Apr 2, 2015 | News Slider
The Student Government Association Presidential Debate is set for Monday, April 6 at 5 p.m. in Shamblin Theater. Elections will be held on Tuesday, April 7 in Bennett Campus Center. Students will be able to vote for executive positions and senators from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Runoffs will be held Thursday, April 9. Students will only be able to vote for the senators in their class. Five senators are chosen for each class. Elections for Senator-at-large will be held Tuesday, April 14. To ask the presidential candidates questions, students can Tweet using the hashtag “LUdebate.” The following students are candidates in the 2015-2016 SGA election: President: Julia Allen Jordan Beale Margaret Rox Vice President: Ezra Fritz Lauren Gardiner Hannah Passamonte Jackson Smith David Villacorta Secretary: Jamie Keiser Treasurer: Adrian Ricketts Senior Senator: Zach Clemens Stephen D. Grady Brennan Johnson Cole Meador Anne-Claire Smith Kendall Young Junior Senator: Anna Cannone Philip Grimsley Caroline Hensley Carter Hilliard Grant Mathis Megan Neuenschwander Katie Scholl Sophomore Senator: Sinney Chan Brandon Cunningham Matt Gibson Luis Hernandez Destiny S. Mhishi Megan Roberts Alleah Thompson Grayson Webber Senator-at-large: Rachael Langston Caleb...
by Kyrsten Turner | Apr 9, 2014 | News Slider
Rising senior Drew Watson has been elected SGA President for 2014-15 school year. Watson, a rising senior, said he is really excited about his new position and is ready to serve the student body. “I knew it was going to be a close race and I’ve just had a lot of fun campaigning,” Watson said. “It’s been kind of stressful, but it’s been a lot of fun. “I am really excited to start this summer on some of the things that I talked about in the debate, specifically with the summer internships.” A runoff election will be held Thursday, April 10, for the vice president and secretary positions. Julia Allen and Seth Carey are the VP runoff candidates, while Jamie Keiser and Margaret Rox are the Secretary runoff candidates. Melissa Parrish was elected as treasurer. Elections will be in the Bennett Campus Center from 12-3 p.m. Below are the list of elected senators, from SGA’s email sent to the student body. Senior Senators: Kirby Arloff Brendon Burke Whitney North Spencer Richardson Allie Sockwell Junior Senators: Michael Clinger Brennan Johnson Cole Meador Adrian Ricketts Anne Claire Smith Sophomore Senators: Anna Cannone Layne Collier Sarah Lavoie Megan Neuenschwander Ellen Taylor Cory Woodroof contributed to this story. Photo credit: Bridgette...
by Logan Butts | Apr 7, 2014 | News Slider
The second annual SGA debates were held in Shamblin Theatre Monday night with SGA and Lumination Network once again co-sponsoring the event. The centerpiece of the evening was the debate between presidential candidates Taylor Cao and Drew Watson. The candidates expressed their opinions on a number of oft-discussed topics on Lipscomb’s campus such as academics, students dealing with the various events held on campus, Lipscomb’s alcohol policy and the school’s parking issues. Watson, the incumbent SGA vice president, touched on his previous experience with SGA, as well what he hopes to implement if elected president. “I think that experience is something that I have, and that is very valuable, especially for the president position,” Watson said. “I think that leading an organization requires you to be knowledgeable about it, be knowledgeable about its functions and about its responsibilities. “I’ve learned a lot this year as vice president, so I definitely think I would be able to hit the ground running this summer.” Watson says he hopes to use the role to be a servant for the Lipscomb community. “I think that the president role should be a means of service, and I believe that I will do a great job serving the student body,” Watson said. “I’m not doing this for the title. I’m not doing this because it will look good on a resume. I’m doing this because I truly believe I could serve the student body in this role.” Cao, who served as an active SGA member for the first time this semester, also expressed the plans he has for his potential presidency, along with why he...
