Five questions with new SG officers
Posted on: 4/4/2015; Updated on: 4/10/2015By Whitney Smith
The fall 2015-spring 2016 Student Government student body officers were inaugurated March 18 and have already begun planning for the next semester. Jonathan Kaufman was elected as student body president, Lee Goble as student body vice president and Ian Shannon as student body treasurer. We asked your student body officers these five questions to introduce them to the Gamecock community:
Q: Where are you from?
Jonathan Kaufman: I am from Frederick, Maryland, although my family has been in Florence, S.C. for generations.
Lee Goble: Gaffney, South Carolina.
Ian Shannon: I am from Greenville, South Carolina.
Q: What changes do you anticipate making for the fall 2015 semester?
JK: This upcoming fall semester, I'm hoping to make it easier for freshmen to connect with USC and the opportunities offered here. I want to make sure that our students plug into the resources and organizations we have here to optimize their college experience.
LG: Better informing students about what senate is doing and has done and how it affects the student body.
IS: I plan on increasing communication and the level of transparency with Student Government and the rest of the student body. We will be trying new marketing strategies in reaching out to students and letting them know what is going on within Student Government.
Q: What is one way you plan to improve the student experience at UofSC?
JK: I want to bring our campus together. If students had a clear connection to the university and to other students around campus, our experience would be drastically improved. We already have the resources on campus to make these connections happen; we just need to bring the students and programs together.
LG: The best way to figure out where and how we can improve the student experience is by asking the student body. I plan to do this by increasing our survey response rate in order for us to better know what the students want and then move forward in creating change based on their responses.
IS: I plan to increase the efficiency of the requesting process for student organizations. The process for funding should not be a frightening one. It should be one that is done quickly and easily.
Q: Who do you look up to most and why?
JK: I look up to my grandmother. She was a single mother of three children who lifted our family out of poverty and firmly into the middle class. Each of her children attended college and were raised with the core values and beliefs that made them into amazing parents, aunts and uncles. Without her work and example, I would not be where I am today.
LG: I look up to my grandfather, who passed away recently, because he was always very reasonable and was able to see both sides of every issue. However, he never wavered from his own opinion, and his opinion was always made with a great amount of personal reflection and consideration.
IS: I look up to my parents. They have raised me in an environment that rewards hard work and dedication. They have given me my core values that I will not ever lose and that is invaluable to me.
Q: What is your favorite part of UofSC and why?
JK: My favorite part of USC is the community! I have always felt that Carolina is a big family, and I love that we can rely on each other for support and encouragement. The Carolina family is my single favorite part of USC.
LG: My favorite parts of USC are my friends and the people here. Some of the best experiences, like beating UGA in the rain this past football season, would not be nearly as exciting or memorable without experiencing them with my friends and other students.
IS: My favorite part of UofSC is the community here. I absolutely love talking to new people and learning about how they wound up here. It really is a diverse community and that makes every day exciting.
Follow your student body officers on Twitter:
Jonathan Kaufman @jonathan_kauf
Lee Goble @LeeGoble
Ian Shannon @IanShannon8
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