WT Student Government Association Set for 2022-23 Academic Year

Copy by Chip Chandler, 806-651-2124, cchandler@wtamu.edu

CANYON, Texas — Nearly three dozen West Texas A&M University students are making sure their peers have a voice in University governance.

Following election of freshman senators Sept. 13 and 14, the WT Student Government Association is busy making plans to engage and support the student body during the 2022-23 academic year.

Senators are elected in the spring to represent their Colleges the following academic year, and freshmen are elected in the fall so that they also have an opportunity to serve and be involved, said Amanda Lawson, assistant director of new student and transfer orientation and staff liaison to SGA.

“Student government is great opportunity for students to get involved and build their resume for their future careers,” Lawson said. “They are learning leadership, networking, event planning and public relations, all while working to make a difference for the students at WT.”

In addition to senators, the campus-wide vote in the spring installed the leadership team of Annie Valicek, a junior agribusiness and economics major from Houston, as president; Jake Cannon, a senior animal science major from Centerville, as vice president; and Tucker Gattis, a senior agriculture major from Pottsboro, as chief justice.

“I am extremely eager to see the work that SGA will do on behalf of our students this year,” Valicek said. “My goal within SGA internally is to enable and empower out strong student leaders to take action in areas of campus that they are passionate about and use the skills they have to further the mission of the university and encourage constant growth. I encourage students to get to know those representing them in all branches of SGA and let your voice be heard.”

Valicek appointed students to the SGA executive branch:

• Secretary of External Affairs: Brandon Melnikoff, a senior agriculture education major from Collbran, Colorado;
• Secretary of Facilities: Matthew Machicek, a senior mechanical engineering major from Temple;
• Secretary of Student Involvement: Emmie Bertoni, a freshman agribusiness major from Yoakum;
• Secretary of Transfer Student Success: Jayce Maker, a junior agribusiness major from Sterling, Colorado;
• Secretary of Interdisciplinary Programming: Ashton Hollingsworth, a freshman agriculture major from Fort Worth;
• Secretary of Student Support Services: Hannah Brown, a freshman political science major from Dalhart; and
• Secretary of Campus Community: Allan Baltazar, a senior criminal justice major from Houston.

Additional students were appointed as associate justices on the judicial branch, which oversees general elections, student parking appeals and referendums:

• Katherine Davis, a freshman pre-nursing major from Guymon, Oklahoma;
• Hallie Lackey, a senior general business major from Canyon;
• Gracie Oates, a junior agricultural media and communication major from Paradise; and
• Lauren Stovall, a sophomore political science major from Amarillo.

The elected senators comprise the legislative branch, overseen by the vice president and responsible for representing students’ views to University administration:

• Zyna Abujuma, a junior political science major from Amarillo;
• Filiberto Avila, a junior broadcast journalism major from Spearman;
• Jordyn Byrd, a freshman animal science major from Kingwood;
• James Castle, graduate engineering major from Hale Center;
• Quinn Dunham, a senior agricultural media and communication major from Greensboro, North Carolina;
• Digna Eze, a senior biology major from Houston;
• Emily Garner, a freshman animal science major from Wills Point;
• Lane Golla, a freshman animal science major from New Braunfels;
• Christian Guerrero, a senior digital communication media major from Hereford;
• Will Hauerland, a freshman agricultural business and economics major from Sealy;
• Maryann Heffley, a senior criminal justice major from Wellington;
• Christian Hernandez, a senior criminal justice major from Killeen;
• Grace Nyabatware, a junior political science major from Amarillo;
• Victoria Reyes, a sophomore musical theatre major from Victoria;
• Tres Pennington, a junior animal science major from Paradise;
• Ava Pluchino, a freshman agricultural business and economics major from Houston;
• Ana Ruiz, a freshman pre-nursing major from Hart;
• Bryce Wiginton, a sophomore political science major from Boys Ranch; and
• Brady Wilson, a freshman agricultural media and communication major from New Waverly.

Additional senators are being recruited to represent the College of Engineering, the Paul and Virginia Engler College of Business and the College of Nursing and Health Sciences.

SGA is one way in which WT creates in its students a commitment to being self-reliant, courageous, resourceful and part of something larger than one’s self, a primary goal of the University’s long-range plan, WT 125: From the Panhandle to the World.

That plan is fueled by the historic, $125 million One West comprehensive fundraising campaign. To date, the five-year campaign — which publicly launched in September 2021 — has raised more than $110 million.

Photo: Student Government Association adviser Amanda Lawson, second from left, goes over a Homecoming checklist with SGA President Annie Valicek, from left, Vice President Jake Cannon and Chief Justice Tucker Gattis.

About West Texas A&M University

WT is located in Canyon, Texas, on a 342-acre residential campus. Established in 1910, the University has been part of The Texas A&M University System since 1990. WT, a Hispanic Serving Institution since 2016, boasts an enrollment of about 10,000 and offers 59 undergraduate degree programs and more than 40 graduate degrees, including two doctoral degrees. The University is also home to the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum, the largest history museum in the state and the home of one of the Southwest’s finest art collections. The Buffaloes are a member of the NCAA Division II Lone Star Conference and offers 14 men’s and women’s athletics programs.

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