Congratulations to IWU's 2013 Senior of the Year and Professor of the Year Winners! Below are their names and some quotes from fellow students who voted for them:

Kristie Herring – Senior of the Year

"Kristie is so sweet and so encouraging. I have felt blessed by every single conversation I've had with her. TEAM KRISTIE!"

"Kristie has a wonderful impact on our community here at IWU. She always has a smile on her face and wants to put a smile on everyone else’s face that she comes in contact with. She truly has shown me what it means to live out the love of Christ in the mix of everything. She is very busy with her nursing classes and her family but she still makes time to be part of the community here and come to extra activities that are not required for class. She is always willing to listen, give an encouraging word as well as lead a shoulder to cry on. Kristie will always come to my mind in the years to come when I think of the business of class and for many more years to come. Kristie truly has been a blessing in my life as well as many other students on our campus."

"She always has a positive attitude. Even though she'd express her business and struggles, she showed her strength by moving forward. I respect her for her hard work and willingness to help all of us throughout these four years."

"She was a full time mother, student, and employee. How could we complain about homework when she has so much more on her plate than the majority of us?"

"Kristie is always in high spirits and is always willing to encourage anyone. I would not have my made it through nursing school without this lovely lady."

Brenda Sloan – Professor of the Year

"Professor Sloan teaches one of the hardest nursing classes for senior students:  Critical Care Nursing.  She knows how to teach this class without making it too overwhelming with all the information we cover in class.  She has been such an encouragement to the senior nursing students and empowers us.  She also has wise words to share whether they relate to nursing or not and always keeps her door open for students to come and talk with her."

"She is an amazing nurse, she loves her students, she wants us to succeed and is committed to showing Christ through her actions."

"Professor Sloan has been my academic advisor from my freshman year on. She has challenged me to reach my full potential academically, encouraged me, and advocated for me when I felt alone and like I had no one to turn to for academic advice. She has so positively impacted my life while here at IWU."

"Brenda Sloan has impacted the community by genuinely caring for the students she interacts with. She is the most encouraging professor I have ever had here at IWU.  She displays a Christ-like attitude in her classroom and outside the classroom. She is an awesome professor, always able to explain concepts well. She deserves this award."

VOTE for your 2013-1014 rep today! http://goo.gl/HA9Ly <-- our online ballot closes at 5pm today. Good luck with finals!

This year IWU students will be primarily voting for students from within their academic disciplines, as we refocus on the quality of our academic community as a central student topic.

Recognize the professors and peers who have positively impacted you this year by nominating them for Professor / Senior of the Year. Awards will be received at this Spring's graduation ceremony and announced online. Vote here!

http://goo.gl/nR2WD

Here is an update on the SGA Elections timeline!

MON, 04/15: Student Representative Applications Due at 2pm
TUE, 04/23: Online ballots sent out through Daily Developments, voting from 8am-5pm
TUE, 04/23: Election results tallied by the Student Elections Committee (SEC)
WED, 04/24: Election results published on social media sites and letters sent to applicants

Elections are coming! Keep turning in applications!

Below is next year's leadership team. These 6 students are excited for the new structure we have used this year to create.

With a streamlined and engaging structure, SGA initiatives can be more about student action and engagement in positively transforming IWU's campus. Grassroots initiatives created by regular students will welcome all students to take collective action to better our culture and school.

Who knows what possibilities exist? Energy initiatives could be created to teach the IWU campus about stewarding natural resources; Students could join together raise funds for students struggling to pay for school; this is an opportunity for service and community.

Your Cabinet '13-'14
Student Body President – Tim Scurlock
Executive Vice President – Gabe Crofford
VP for Academic Affairs – Taryn Coates
VP for Student Life – Emily Smith
VP for Finances & Orgs – Lindsey Ramundo
VP for Operations – Phil Ross

The structure of the SGA Assembly has been changed drastically, removing the prior separation between Academics, ResLife, and Classes. The overall size of SGA is smaller to create positions and relationships that are more meaningful and can serve as actual jobs for student leaders on-campus.

Listed below are the various Student Rep positions to be elected:

1 Student Rep // Division of Art
1 Student Rep // Division of Communication & Theatre
1 Student Rep // Division of Modern Language & Literature
1 Student Rep // Division of Music
1 Student Rep // Division of Social Sciences
1 Student Rep // Division of Behavioral Sciences
1 Student Rep // Division of Business
1 Student Rep // Division of Natural Sciences
1 Student Rep // Division of Mathematics & Computer Info Sciences
1 Student Rep // Division of Health & Human Performance
1 Student Rep // School of Theology & Ministry
1 Student Rep // School of Nursing Pre-licensure
1 Student Rep // School of Teacher Education
1 Student Rep // School of Life Calling & Integrative Learning
1 Student Rep // Commuter Students
1 Student Rep // Sophomore Students

Total = 20 Student Representatives*

* 2 Student Reps will be elected in the Fall from the Freshman class. The representative positions for Freshman and Sophomore students are in place to make sure that students of all years are involved in student leadership. 2 Student Reps will be selected from Student Org leaders who apply and are interviewed to assist the VP for Finances and Orgs in organization management and communication.

Copied below is my letter to the editor of the Sojourn, published last night here. This letter was the product of my last 3 years of following and participating in our university's student government (SGA). During this time I have seen student governments created, torn down and rebuilt – all sponsored by new student representatives with good intentions. This rebuilding process each year has not only been ineffective toward long-term objectives, it has prevented IWU students from associating in any productive way. (If I ever felt that I might be mistaken in this assessment or unfair, several weeks ago I met a student body president from the 1990's – he said that his year might be remembered for "their constitutional overhaul.")

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Student representation, whether through a student government or union, will never be more than the sum of its parts. The organized response of students to the quality and direction of their higher learning institutions will only be as good as the level of participation by their student bodies in the process.

Our own student government (SGA) has struggled for more than a decade with poor organization and inefficiency. Most disappointingly, it has seldom been able to assess the needs of students and bring them to the attention of our institution.

Some of this inefficiency is due to the inherent nature of positions that switch each year, which naturally impacts student leaders’ abilities to plan. I have watched past SGA presidents attempt to capitalize on their limited terms, to mobilize the student body or lead from behind the scenes during their time — I have been one of the latter. In my second and last semester as student body president, I look back on this year and regret the lack of meaningful student participation and our inability to foster such a culture.

But this problem can be cured.

Such a cure requires that multiple steps be taken. We must first realize that our role is not one of government or public authority, but is that of an advocate. Our concern is not with acquiring decision-making authority for students — the evolving climate of higher education alone will demand such student-faculty-institution collaboration for educational institutions to survive.

Instead, learner advocacy processes must be streamlined and student involvement and engagement opportunities must be pursued — we know that students are passionate and that it is our job to provide efficient structures and processes by which those students can make a meaningful difference.

This is why, in the last few weeks, we have hosted multiple talks and have completely restructured student representation. Most of the bureaucracy is gone, and a frame built for flexibility and action has been left in its place. Elections will no longer be about choosing students to fill seats in the process of tallying student opinion, but will be purposed instead toward community selection of student leaders to facilitate student initiatives for the betterment of our learning community.

All we need now is the most vital piece: You.

– Aaron Augello