Since taking office on March 27, Student Body President Khari Cyrus and Student Body Vice President Nate Bridgers have been making plans for how to carry out their campaign platforms.
Cyrus and Bridgers have been in and out of meetings with campus administrators, faculty, students, campus interest groups and local government representatives, according to the administration.
They plan on delivering the initiatives that they ran on during their campaign which involve inclusiveness, education affordability and increasing the quality of student life during their presidencies.
The administration plans to reinstate the “You Me We… It’s Time to Talk” and including it during spring diversity education week in 2016. Cyrus and Bridgers have also been working with The Department of Multicultural Affairs and Diversity Outreach to foster conversations about sexual equity, issues of diversity and inclusion.
“I can’t call it a specific program or initiative—it’s just a frame of mind that we’ve established,” Cyrus said.
The platform’s first plank is making NC State a voting election site for the 2016 presidential elections.
The administration also plans on revitalizing UNC rivalry week for both fall and spring, having TransLoc monitors installed at bus stops across campus, creating dual-lot parking passes and reaching their goal of obtaining $10,000 in grants from the UNC Association of Student Governments.
Cyrus and Bridgers are working to get discounts on Hillsborough Street like the current Howlin’ Good Deals offered only to students paying with the credit or debit account on their Wolfpack One cards, similar to the Alumni Association discount.
“We really want to work closely with the Hillsborough Street Commission and Live It Up! Hillsborough,” Cyrus said.
The administration appointed the members of their executive cabinet. They nominated Chris Becker director of university affairs, Colin Beamer co-director of traditions, Adam Armstrong co-director of traditions, Seth Storey director of government relations, Kenneth Erickson, director of athletics, Malcolm Benitz, event coordinator, Meredith Mason executive assistant, Moriah Barrow, director of multicultural affairs and diversity outreach and Camden Willeford, director of communication.
During the summer, Cyrus will attend a National Coalition Building Institute conference to learn about inclusive communities and fostering inclusive environments. Cyrus hopes to take what he learns there and apply it at NC State to incorporate formalized training on diversity, inclusion and equity into Student Government. Cyrus will also start serving as the student vote on the Board of Trustees.
Aside from being SBVP, Bridgers is also head of Wolfpack Pick Up. Due to Wolfpack Pick Up’s success, Eastern Carolina University has reached out to Bridgers to establish a similar program, Pirate Pick Up. Other schools such as the University of Mississippi have also expressed interest in starting their own program, Bridgers said.
Cyrus also hopes to facilitate the installation of the 54-bell carillon, a set of stationary bells instead of an electric speaker system, into the Bell Tower by working with the student-initiated grassroots movement “Finish the Tower.”
Becker, a senior studying philosophy, said he is looking forward to working with the administration in the coming school year.
“The executive team is a diverse group of student leaders that have contributed to the campus in one form or another as opposed to just friends of people in the administration,” he said. “The members are some of the most qualified to do their job.”
Becker will be working on democratizing educational spaces, the creation of a student voice and ultimately vote in colleges and departments, and working with campus partners such as Inter-Residence Council, Interfraternity Council, Panhellenic Council and Office of Institutional Equity and Diversity on projects such as “It’s On Us.”
Carson Shepherd, a junior studying political science, said she is excited to see what the administration will accomplish.
“I have a lot of hope for this administration,” Shepherd said. “I think we appointed the people that are going to roll up their sleeves and get the work done. Everyone we appointed was really passionate about the area of Student Government that they applied for.”
