NIC’s spring semester came to a close with a newly elected president and vice president in addition to new senators. Former ASNIC senator Peter Soderberg ran for president unopposed and Vice President Scott Kennedy received 40.63 percent of the votes; a total of 260 students participated in the election.
Soderberg said that the campaigning process was a unique experience. Instead of having to tell people why they should vote for him, he had the opportunity to get to know students. He said that the process allowed him to meet many students he may have otherwise not met.
“It was more of, ‘I’m gonna be your representative, but what’s the issues I can address?'” Soderberg said. “It was more of a ‘get to know each other.'”
Kennedy said that he enjoyed campaigning and getting to know his fellow students. His strategy was to hand students fliers individually and encourage them to vote. He had previously thought of being involved in his high school’s student government but decided against it.
“It’s kind of experiencing a different element to a person when you ask them to vote for you,” Kennedy said. “It was stressful, there was an aspect of that during campaigning.”
Both campaigned with the intention to bring more communication between ASNIC and the student body. Soderberg said he wants to instill a feeling of campus pride. By bringing more activities on campus and further communication with students, Soderberg hopes that students will participate and be more involved in campus life.
“There’s a lot of times that there’s not a lot going on on campus,” he said. “I think that we need to enhance the college experience. I want students to leave NIC and say, ‘wow, I loved NIC.'”
Similarly, Kennedy wants students to feel more connected to clubs and that nothing infringes upon a positive learning environment.
Current president Caleb Weeks is planning on returning to NIC in the fall. His primary focus will be school and hobbies that he previously did not have time for.
“I’m just going to be a student, relaxing, hanging out with my family a lot,” Weeks said.
While Weeks and vice president Robert Smith weren’t able to complete every task they had wanted to, they are both satisfied with what they accomplished.
“There are so many steps to changing a process on campus that you need to stop and smell the flowers every now and then,” Smith said. “Celebrate the small victories.”
Kennedy and Soderberg among other ASNIC representatives were inducted on April 23.
