In a few sentences, introduce yourself to your peers!
Hello everyone, my name is Riley Ward, and I am extremely excited to be running for our student government! A fun fact about me is that I grew up on a farm in southeastern Minnesota, which means I had a whole lot of pets (5 dogs, 2 cats, 2 bunnies, and ~200 calves). I highly recommend reaching out and getting to know me as I am excited to get to know you all, and hopefully represent our amazing class of 2027!
Why would you be a good leader of your Freshman class? You may include any leadership advocacy type of experience you have done.
I enjoy being a leader, not only because it allows me to meet new people, but because I love being able to make a positive impact. My history with advocating for the beliefs and values of a vast group of individuals is extensive, but my favorites include representing Minnesota 4-H and Minnesota Dairy Farmers. In eleventh grade I was accepted into a group called the Minnesota 4-H State Ambassadors. To put it simply, 4-H is a youth development program designed to teach leadership skills through a variety of interests (you might know a 4-H'er as they are the ones who bring animals and projects to county/state fairs). As an ambassador for this organization, I was allowed to meet members of the Minnesota House of Representative and Senate while working closely with adult staff and fellow ambassadors to ensure a quality experience for 4-H'ers at our camps, national conferences, and everything in-between. I was selected to serve a second term where my focus extended to aid in the development of the ambassador program itself. Because of this experience I have knowledge in creating/facilitating a variety of events, implementing new ideas while seeing them into fruition, and feel passionately about working to make the best better. Finally, this past spring I was named a Princess Kay of the Milky Way Finalist. In this role I represented Minnesota Dairy Farmers by doing countless television/newspaper interviews, radio segments, and volunteer work to aid in the promotion of dairy products (this opportunity also led me to get my head sculpted out of 90lbs of butter at the state fair). These leadership positions have made me who I am today, and I hope to use all the skills I have developed to aid in leading the class of 2027.
What ideas do you believe you could bring to the table in Student Government Association? How would you pursue these changes?
A couple of ideas I would like to discuss with the Student Government are finding new ways to engage our class from fun activities to opportunities aimed at improving academic/career success, as well as addressing new ways to hear ideas from all spectrums of the student body. These changes are not foreign to my skillset, I would go about creating and enacting these opportunities with the same passion for improvement that I have carried throughout my life. An idea as simple as a movie night or our hide and seek event can be addressed and implemented through the proper channels ensuring we can all get as much out of college as our hearts desire.
