Change. Whether it comes in the form of a new president or new ideas, change is necessary. I am uniquely prepared to make it happen. Throughout my life, I have been an effective leader. After three semesters, I am already the communications officer for the Kirby Government & Law Society, a member of the executive board of the Mock Trial team, on the board of the Bipartisan Coalition and a vice president of Kappa Kappa Gamma. All of these endeavors require high levels of organization and time management skills which I have mastered.

Overall, the unique nature of my leadership experiences has laid the foundation for my success in this role. But what will I do with these experiences? I will make it happen. The current leadership has made little room for the wide-scale change necessary to improve the lives of the student body. Any candidate can have ideas that they want to implement, but none of my opponents will tell you exactly how they plan on laying that groundwork. With no influence and legitimacy, the Student Government doesn’t have the ability to enact change. That is why I have a three-pronged plan on how I will make room for change and implement it effectively.

First, I will increase the influence StuGov has on campus, this will be enacted through the increase of media and outreach to students. We will also increase legitimacy by hosting events, partnering with more student organizations and sending out more updates on StuGov’s progress and achievements.

Next, we will alleviate the annual StuGov budgeting crisis. This can be done through presidential negotiations with Rec Services, the Board of Trustees and other members of the administration. Currently, club sports take up more than half of the budget allotted to the StuGov to delegate to other organizations. By attempting to switch who pays for club sports, a huge burden will be lifted and more funds can go to other student organizations that might not have had sufficient funds before. In addition, with Rec Services, athletics or other school funds going to club sports, they might even end up with more flexibility, assistance and legitimacy in the end.

And finally, the third prong is you. The students. I plan to open up around one General Body Meeting a month to everyone to make room for student voices. Suggestion boxes and Instagram polls are not enough to gauge the opinions and feelings of the students we represent. By opening up these meetings, it will give the Student Government an idea of what needs to change to best fit the interests of the student body.

Now finally, after room for change has been made, I can share a part of my vision for the future of the Student Government and Lafayette College. I plan on creating a committee to address Dining Services, i.e. hiring more, expanding daily options, fixing the Gilbert’s mobile ordering crisis, adding more food in the Eco Cafe and adding more fresh options. I also plan on adding more all-gender bathrooms, addressing the minimum wage, increasing tampon quality and accessibility, lighting the campus better at night, altering the Dean’s excuse policy, advertising the arts, and adding more shuttle communication and information. If you want success, vote for the best. I will make it happen.

Anna Fenkel ’25 is a candidate for the president of Student Government. She currently serves as a Representative on the Public Relations & Marketing Committee.