Shelby Angilley poses for a photo after being elected the new Student Government president
Photo by Mariah Tevepaugh
Shelby Angilley and Cole McNew are the new president and vice president of MCCC Student Government.
The election, held Tuesday afternoon, Sept. 30, was close, with Angilley topping McNew for the president position.
Then McNew won the vice president position in another close race.
Tom Ryder, Student Government adviser, declined to release the vote totals.
Members both new and old were elected, setting up a government with a wide array of opinions on different topics.
Other officers elected were Jessica Ryder, secretary; Chase Linbecker, liaison; Miyuki Zerke, treasurer; and Madisyn Taylor, historian.
Angilley has been in Student Government for two years. She has held the position of secretary for one year and has chaired the Student Government Blood Drive both years.
During this time, she said she worked to serve as a go-between for new members and the elected leaders of the group.
In her campaign speech, she promised to motivate new members to take leadership roles within the government and to get involved, to help make the group more productive.
McNew is a second-year member of Student Government.
He hasn’t held an office at MCCC, but did during his junior high and high school years.
He said his goal is to both introduce new techniques to improve productivity, and to focus Student Government on having more fun.
Despite having different backgrounds and views, virtually all candidates expressed the hope that this year would mark a new sense of inclusion for all members.
This came after allegations of intimidation of newer members in previous years, Angilley said.
“Certain individuals may have come off as more intimidating, so it really scared some of the new members,” she said.
As Student Government secretary, she said she listened to the complaints and decided to do something about it.
“Because of that, I’ve been able to develop an idea of the change I’d like to make to make sure it doesn’t repeat,” she said.
Most of the candidates promised to help new members find a place in the group.
“I think the biggest thing we need to do (more) this year than last year is show people how important they are in our group,” McNew said.
“That’s been pretty universal, I think everybody’s said that.”
All the officers said they are confident this will be a good year for Student Government.
“I couldn’t be happier with the nominations,” Ryder said.
“Anybody that they nominated today, I felt very comfortable that they could fill any of the seats they were nominated for.”
