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Candidates Introduce Themselves
Candidates for the three top Student Government Association positions delivered the following speeches at Belk Auditorium on Tuesday, April 12.
Nina Gilliam
Candidate for President, Student Government Association
First of all I want to thank those of you who came out to support those who are running, and for coming down this great week when we are having our Spring Fling.
I first want to tell you why I want to become the SGA President and what all I'm involved in. I am currently the SGA secretary. As Calie was saying, it's a lot of work that is often not appreciated. It's not that great. But, I got to work on the board all year, and I got to work with the president, vice president, and treasurer, so I know how the board is run. So I feel that I have some aspect of how the board is run.
I am currently the president of Gamma Chi Epsilon. I am a member of the judicial board. I am a Guardian Angel and on the Gateway staff, Student Affairs Committee, and I am a member of the BMC (Bailey Mountain Cloggers). So leadership skills --- I can say that I have them to run the presidency.
But I am not going to stand up here and tell you what I am going to change about the school that can't be done. Like the food - I can't make that better. Making classes go away when it snows - I can't change that either. But I will tell you some of my ideas.
I first want to get more student involvement. This has been a problem since my freshman year, and you may ask, well how do I plan to do this? Well one, I'm going to become more involved in what I already am involved in - by going to more of the student activities, whether I think they're going to be great activities or not. Because to get students out, they see their leaders participating also. If that means going and knocking on every door, dorm, and the apartments, I'll do it -- pull people out, tell them to become more involved.
And also find more activities that students are involved in that they would want to come to - more concerts that are reasonably priced that students could come to for free.
Also, the formal that we had to plan - I worked extensively on planning that, so I have an idea how to plan that next year. I also want to bring back the "Leave Your Jeans At Home Party" that we had. Did you all have a good time? Would you like to see it again? Well I'm going to help do that again next year, because I was here to plan it this year.
So - being on the board, I know how things are run. I know how to plan the formal, run a meeting, take great notes as secretary, make certain people are here when they are supposed to be. I did try to contact all the candidates to remind them that they are supposed to be here, but I'm not their mamma and daddy, and I can't force them to be here. So I'm sorry!
So on April 14, Voting Day, be sure to vote. Be sure to vote on Wednesday.
Ben Tallcott
Candidate for President, Student Government Association
My name is Ben Tallcott. I am running for Student Body President. You know, there are a lot of things left to be done at Mars Hill College, and it excites me as we are about to open up a new year.
As I was speaking with several students on campus throughout the past few weeks, obtaining signatures and soliciting votes, of course, I came across one person who shocked me when I asked for her signature. Her response was, "Yeah, I'll sign your paper, but what can you do for me?"
As foolish as that might sound, and the way she said it, it made me stop and think. What can I do personally for students, and how often do we in SGA and in any form of government work so hard to try to get to our people that we forget about what their personal needs are?
What I can do personally for students is to be available to listen, be visible on campus to support their activities, and work with the executive council and the senate to make Mars Hill College a place that we all love, a place that we respect, and to make Mars Hill a place that we can be glad to call home again.
What I can do for students will depend largely on students as well. I just found out that I had prepared the same quote that Matt Dills had, and it is a beautiful quote ---"Ask not what your country can do for you, but ask what you can do for your country."
The point is --the same applies to our government here at Mars Hill College. I think it is a great point to make. I am here to serve students and their concerns, but it is my job to find out what these concerns are. And students must be active in giving their input into government. Government is an active relationship between people being represented and the leaders of those people. With student input I can use my knowledge and the presidency to see that those needs are met.
There is so much good left to be done here at Mars Hill College, and yes, that does excite me. As we approach a new year, we know all too well that our future is never certain. The only thing that is certain is change. And I believe there is going to be a great change here at Mars Hill College in the upcoming year - a change for the good.
I look around this campus and I see a campus still in turmoil much of the time, with students wishing that they had never come here, actively voicing their opinions on how much they hate this campus, and that disturbs me. Each year Mars Hill College's retention rate increases (sic), while our freshman class gets larger each year. Most of them do not remain for the entire year, let alone come back in the fall as a sophomore. This is a problem that hasn't changed, and it hasn't changed in the most immediate manner.
I didn't want to come to Mars Hill College either. I begged my parents not to come here. I applied to every other college I could to keep from coming here, because I hated Mars Hill College so much. When I actually had to come here, after the first semester I loved this campus so much that I committed myself to telling other people how much I love it. And it hurts me to see the atmosphere dropping each year. But I think we can help that.
I don't want to watch this college go through the pain that it experienced when we fought with our trustees for answers on the resignations of our president and chancellor. And student government has worked hard to create a working relationship between faculty, staff, administrators, and the trustees. And I am committed to continuing that work.
Even through these efforts, however, it seems that the administrators and trustees get further and further away from hearing what students have to say. This year I helped the music department organize a discussion forum with Dr. (Rick) Cary so we could ask questions about Dr. (Joel) Reed's removal as chair of the department, especially since it came in the middle of the semester. This meeting will occur this week, actually, on Thursday at 7 p.m., if anyone would like to attend.
Communication is important. And I won't allow the administration at this college to ignore students. We are strong. We have a voice, and I am determined that we will continue to use it, because if we don't, then we can lose it.
I love Mars Hill College with all my heart, and my primary goal is to make Mars Hill a place that everyone will love again - a place that we all can call home again.
I also believe that Mars Hill College is a unique college, because we are diverse. This diversity allows us to have incredible campus life. SGA is a place for all people and all aspects of life to come together to create and change policy in the name of student betterment. I believe that every organization and all people deserve representation in SGA - providing that they go about it in an ethical manner.
I profess to be a Christian, and I profess Jesus Christ as my Savior. I believe it is important to uphold and support all aspects of religious life on this campus. And I am dedicated to continuing a leadership that is rooted in God --and to continue the work that the presidents before me have started. I have had three years to watch some of the finest examples of true leadership that I have ever had the privilege of seeing in my life. People like Brent Townsend, Chris Alley, and now Jeff Jenkins.
Never has there been a more important time than now to work with Campus Ministry, FLASH, S.G.A., and all other religious aspects of life on this campus, to create the respect and support of an inter-faith community. I believe that Mars Hill College is a place where persons of all faith can freely worship in the way they see fit, without fear of ridicule or hatred. Together we can enhance that atmosphere here at Mars Hill College.
I think one of the best policies I have ever heard in my life comes from the Methodist Church, and it states, "open minds, open hearts, and open doors." This has to be SGA's policy: to have open minds about people and change, and to have open hearts to be there for each other when we are hurting and in need. We are a family at Mars Hill College, and I am committed to maintain that relationship on this campus. And finally, to have open doors to make ourselves available to all people and their concerns and needs.
Look for a bright future. I believe that as president of the student body at Mars Hill College, I can meet these goals. Let's work together to make Mars Hill a place that we can all call home.
Matt Dills
Candidate for Vice President, Student Government Association
I'm Matt Dills. I'm running for vice president of the Student Government Association. In his inaugural address to the United States, President John F. Kennedy offered a proposition to the American people: "Ask not what your country can do for you, but ask what you can do for your country."
In trying to decide the whys and wherefores of my quest for the office of vice president of the Student Government Association, this one quote kept coming to me on a slightly different matter: "Ask not what Mars Hill can do for me, but ask what I can do for Mars Hill."
So just what can I do? What can I do to make Mars Hill the place it should be? What is my role? These questions just leapt through my mind. I was personally asked these questions while I was campaigning for signatures. The more I've thought about my role, the more I've realized my role should be a small one.
Calie Uker
Candidate for Secretary, Student Government Association
I am a junior transfer student from Boise, Idaho. While at Mars Hill, I am interested in a double major in sociology and psychology. I am a member of the Bailey Mountain Cloggers. I am a Grayson Scholar, and I hope to get a judiciary position this coming fall.
I think my involvement with the different arenas of this school provide me with the unique ability to represent a vast array of students. he role of SGA secretary is a role I feel I would be really great at and would succeed at. I am extremely organized, efficient, prompt, and reliable. e role of secretary is one that can be greatly under-appreciated at times, but it is a vital part of any governmental organization. If become SGA secretary, I promise to not only work hard for other SGA members, but the entire student body as well.
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