The Students’ Association took no breaks after transitioning to a new group of senators during the April 12 meeting.

Along with this new Senate body comes new leadership for SA.

The executive board is composed of the president, vice president, and four staff appointments: government affairs chair, finance chair, communications chair and chief-of-staff.

Name: Anna Shane

Job on Senate: Government Affairs Chair

Majors: Political Science, Spanish, and Global Studies

Year: Sophomore

Hometown: Sioux Falls, SD

How long have you been on SA? Since November of 2020

What is your vision for the 2021-22 Senate? I am so inspired by all of the innovative ideas that the recently sworn-in senators are bringing to the table from their platforms. I think that we have another great group of driven, creative senators and with teamwork, I believe every goal can be accomplished in this term.

What are your goals for your position? My biggest goal is to effectively lobby for what South Dakota State University students want to see in their university, city and state. I am so excited to voice the needs, wants and positions of students in state and local government!

Name: Kordell Feldhaus

Job on Senate: Finance Chair

Major: Civil Engineering

Year: Sophomore

Hometown: Britton, SD

How long have you been on SA? This is my first year

What is your vision for the 2021-22 Senate? My vision for the upcoming senate term is to create an efficient and unified voice to help the students the best way fit.

What are your goals for your position? Three goals: I believe that access and transparency around the spending of General Activity Fee (GAF) dollars need to be increased, I want to make sure that student dollars are being spent effectively and correctly and I want to create a culture of transparency within the finance committee and the student organizations, so they know I am working with their best interest in mind.

Name: Blake Pulse

Job on Senate: Chief of Staff

Majors: Agriculture Communications, Political Science

Year: Sophomore

Hometown: Salem, SD

How long have you been on SA? Second year on Senate

What is your vision for the 2021-22 Senate? I envision that the Senate will best represent the interest of the student body and will make a positive difference not only for current Jackrabbits, but generations of Jackrabbits to come.

What are your goals for your position? My biggest priority is SA and GAF education for incoming freshmen through collaborations with organizations and entities on campus to bring in a freshman cheat sheet that will serve as a resource to students.

Name: Andrew Rasmussen

Job on Senate: President

Majors: Journalism, Political Science

Year: Junior

Hometown: Brookings, SD

How long have you been on SA? This will be my 2nd [year]

What is your vision for the 2021-22 Senate? I see the 2021-22 Senate taking on the challenges of bringing SDSU and the student experience back to a pre-pandemic environment, or as close as we can get. I really want to create a culture in SA where students who have ideas or concerns feel confident and comfortable coming to SA for assistance.

What are your goals for your position? Over the course of this term, our team has a variety of goals that we would like to accomplish. Some of our goals include establishing a syllabus bank, creating an ADA accessibility map and ensuring that our student organizations are supported both financially and through general advocacy.

Name: Rachel Schöön

Job on Senate: Vice President

Majors: Political Science, Communication Studies

Year: Junior

Hometown: Sioux Falls, SD

How long have you been on SA? Starting my second term

What is your vision for the 2021-22 Senate? I think we, as a university, want to see the campus opened up in the fall and for clubs and organizations to have access to as many resources as possible. Also, Andrew and I have already made some headway in making campus more accessible and are looking forward to continuing that effort.

What are your goals for your position? As vice president, I want to make sure everyone in the Association feels that they can express their concerns and ideas to the Senate.

Name: Lindsey Moser

Job on Senate: Communications Chair, Senator At-Large

Majors: Agriculture Communications and Public Relations

Year: Junior

Hometown: Morris, MN

How long have you been on SA? This is my first year!

What is your vision for the 2021-22 Senate? I’m very excited to see all we do within the upcoming year and what changes Students’ Association will bring to campus. I hope to see progress in ADA accessibility, an increase in GAF education and awareness and the creation of a campus-wide syllabus bank.

What are your goals for your position? My goal this year is to increase students’ awareness about what Students’ Association is and how our senators are here to serve them. Two initiatives I have started planning include hosting different events throughout the year for senators to easily network with more students and launching senator take-overs on the SA social media platforms. If you haven’t already, follow Students’ Association’s Instagram and Facebook to stay up to date on all that’s happening!

CORRECTION 4/14 ISSUE

There was an inaccuracy in the story “Students’ Association swears in new leadership, senate body” released April 14.

The story reads: “… The School of Performing Arts, saw an allocation increase of $11,000 for FY22.”

This is incorrect. For the FY21 budget, organizations were allowed to carry over remaining funds, making the School of Performing Arts total for FY21 $210,000. The FY22 allocation of $170,000 is a decrease of 19% of last year’s total budget.