First-year student senators sit down with The Saint.

Story by Brooklyn Waggoner, Reporter
Photo courtesy of Facebook

We the people of the Aquinas class of 2020 have spoken, and five promising freshmen have been elected to represent us. This year’s freshman senators are: Nicole Jarvis, Piper Nugent, Evelyn Velasco, Emma Morawski, and Grayson Harding. This past week, I had the privilege to sit down with each of them.

I met with Jarvis first, she was incredibly at ease and approachable. Jarvis is clearly ambitious, she is pursuing a bundle of majors in Business, Communications, and Political Science, on top of being a part of the Insignis Honors Program. And this theme held true; when I asked her what she might like to accomplish as a part of Student Senate, Jarvis smiled and said she wanted to change the world. In the short term however, Nicole hopes to gain experience in leadership from her time on Student Senate, as well as the ability to improve campus life.

Coincidentally, three of the five freshman senators live together. Velasco is Jarvis’ roommate, and was just as pleasant to talk to. Velasco  is another ambitious AQ Saint. A dual major in Business Administration and Accounting, this Insignis student was active in high school as well — National Honor Society president, Student Council Vice President, and Drum Major are all titles she has in her repertoire — she hopes to build upon those leadership skills as a student senator.

Suitemate to Jarvis and Velasco, Nugent is involved in not only Insignis, but also the TRiO Student Support Services. This Elementary Education major is looking forward to getting more involved on campus and meeting new people. Nugent has come into Student Senate with an open mind, and she assures her constituents that she’s not afraid to make change. In fact, she is excited to be a person that her peers can come to on such matters.

Likewise is the case for Morawski, who ran for Student Senate to “be a voice for those who don’t know how to be heard.” She also looks forward to participating in the formal meetings and decision making process. Morawski may be the only UDM Nursing student in the bunch, but she clued me in mentioning that she and the other senators are very excited to be working together and the group has already become friends. Which is certainly a relief, as otherwise things could have been rather awkward for Harding, the only male freshman senator.

Harding assured me that the group has a great dynamic, and they are all invested in making a difference on campus. As a Political Science and Economics major, he admitted that he was VERY excited to be on the budget committee. This senator expressed that he ran for Student Senate to be an outlet for students, to be a positive force on campus. Extremely enthusiastic about his position, Grayson invites students to email him with any concerns or ideas at gjh002@aquinas.edu.

After speaking with all five freshman student senators, I am extremely excited to see where the year takes them. Each of them is eager and ready to get some work done, and all are extraordinarily friendly. As a freshman myself, I would feel comfortable coming to any one of them with ideas or fears. Class of 2020, we’re in good hands this year.