John Taylor Willis, a junior studying business administration with a concentration in finance and international studies, is serving as the Student Body Treasurer for the 97th session of Student Government. He was a first-year student senator and a senator representing the Poole College of Management during the 95th and 96th sessions of Student Government, respectively. In addition to his time serving in the Student Senate, he served as the treasurer of the University Student Centers Board of Directors. Technician spoke with him Tuesday.
What experience do you have in Student Government?
I’ve been in Student Government since I got here, practically. I got involved as soon as I could as a first-year senator, and I was one of the 10 that came in fall of my freshman year. Since then, I’ve tried to serve to the best of my abilities. I got reelected to be a Poole College senator at the end of my freshman year to serve throughout my sophomore year. I did Student Government in high school, which was very informal. My experiences here have definitely changed that.
What is the role of Student Body Treasurer?
The role of Student Body Treasurer is to be the chief financial officer for the Student Body and to really appropriately manage the Student Government budget and the Student Government activities fee. That’s where our budget comes from, from the fee that every student pays. It amounts to about $430,000. [My job is] making sure that money is being used appropriately, wisely, efficiently. It’s very much about making sure that student organizations have access to opportunities and financial resources that they need to function — making sure that Student Government, as a whole, is operating at full capacity and using financial resources responsibly and helping the branches run smoothly with how they use their resources. It’s a lot of back of the house managing. I like to think of my position as a way to find innovative ways to solve problems that the student body has. If an organization comes to us and says “this is a problem that we are facing on campus,” it’s all about how can we find money to solve this issue.
How are the powers of the Student Body Treasurer balanced with the role of Student Senate? More specifically, who has the final say on how student fees are spent?
The powers are balanced in a bunch of different ways. The Student Body Treasurer primarily acts as a financial advisor. I keep track of the ledger, I keep track of expenses, I prepare the budget, [those] are my primary focuses. When it comes to checks and balances, if that’s what you’re asking about, I attend the [Student Senate] finance committee, I attend the student fees committee, and a number of other committees that deal with dispersing money. I am never one who can just say “hey we need to pay for this, so we’re going to buy this,” I don’t actually make purchasing decisions unless it’s something simple such as office supplies. If it’s anything substantial that involves the student body, giving to a student organization or appropriating money, that’s all committee work. I am there to advise and say “this is how much money we have,” and to make sure the other people in Student Government are able to make good financial decisions. It’s not like I’m throwing around money and buying things willy-nilly.
What are your goals for the 97th session of Student Government?
A personal goal would be to get on top of the campus accounting system and understanding it, because it’s really tricky. I’d say that the learning curve for this position is really, really tall. It’s a matter of getting up to speed as fast as possible so that I can really be accurate in everything that we do and look at those details so that we can make sure we’re spending money appropriately. On a bigger scale, I’d say my goals are to improve the student experience at NC State through smart allocation of financial resources.
According to the Student Government budget, you get a $4,200 stipend and it seems that much of what the student body treasurer does is behind the scenes. How do you plan on showing the student body that you have earned this money?
I try in every way possible to be visible. I try to reach out to students and be accessible, be a face. A lot of students who need resources might not be familiar with how to request money. They might not have the experience on how to accurately manage their money. We direct students to the resources. I personally want to put myself out there as a resource for students. If you have a question about how to get money for your student organization or have an issue on campus that needs solving, I want people to feel comfortable talking to me. When I was campaigning, I put my personal phone number on all my business cards, so that’s 5,000 business cards out there. If anyone had a concern or an issue, they could just text me or something like that. I would prefer email, but it’s a matter of accessibility. I want students to be able to talk to me and have a conversation about what they want to improve on campus.
