The newly-elected members of the 2015-2016 Student Government Association were inaugurated Tuesday night in the Ferguson Center’s Grand Hall. The ceremony formally inducted the SGA executive council, senate, and student judiciary into office for the upcoming school year.
The inaugurations began with the position of chief justice. Emily Melton, former chief justice, swore in Akeisha Young, a senior majoring in criminal justice and psychology. Young has served on the judicial board for about two and a half years, and said she was very pleased to see hard work pay off.
“I’m excited for the opportunities to come,” she said. “I feel we’re under great leadership, and all of our executives will help lead us in the right direction.”
Young confirmed that the members of her judicial board support the mission statements and platforms of the executive council, and that they look forward to working as a team.
The 2015-2016 judicial board and senate took their oaths in groups, while Young swore in executive members individually. After winning the run-off election for vice president of student affairs in Monday’s run-off election, Branden Greenburg chose to have his mother accompany him to take his oath. Jonathan Hess, Polly Ricketts, and Elliot Spillers also had their mothers accompany them as they swore to faithfully execute their offices.
Spillers, newly-elected SGA president, delivered his inaugural address immediately following the oath, beginning by expressing his gratitude and thanks to members of SGA and all who supported him. He reflected upon a history of injustice, prejudice, and hatred within the student body, but acknowledged the progress that has been made “by students who challenge the status quo and turn the tide in a new direction.”
Spillers discussed the oneness of the student body in the words of former Alabama coach Paul Bryant.
“’You must learn how to hold a team together,'” Spillers said. “‘You must lift some men up, calm others down, until finally we have one heartbeat. Then you got yourself a team.’”
He urged the Alabama student body to see themselves as one team, one heartbeat. He continued with the assurance that this SGA would work to provide an environment suitable for all students, reemphasizing his campaign message of diversity by promising to ensure that “UA is a place for all, not just some.”
Family and friends attended the inauguration in support of the newly-elected candidates. Kaitlyn Krejci, a freshman majoring in biology, expressed her support for the newest members of SGA.
“This could be a game-changing year for SGA’s impact on campus,” she said. “The elections themselves showed how much the students care.”
Spillers concluded by encouraging every member of the student body to pursue their goals despite all odds.
“Let it never be said that anything is impossible for a UA student,” he said.
