By Isaac Price | Staff Writer
President-elect Georgia Goff ’24 is a current sophomore majoring in secondary education and history. Inside ASWU, she served as incoming student representative last year and this year serves as school spirit coordinator, a position that is disappearing next year.
The Whitworthian interviewed Goff to hear her experiences, vision, and goals for ASWU next year. This interview has been lightly edited for clarity and length.
Why did you decide to run for president?
“Being in ASWU for the last two years and seeing all the things we were able to accomplish, I wanted to be a part of it again. The sorts of things we’ve been able to do have been really cool, and I wanted to continue to work on that progress and improve the university. Looking at which position I wanted to do, my skillset seemed best suited for president, so that’s why I pursued it.”
What are some experiences on campus, both inside and outside of ASWU, that will help with this position?
“My experiences inside ASWU have been as incoming student rep my freshman year and school spirit coordinator this year. I’ve also been a member of the school safety committee, and we’re working on some projects for that which I’m really excited about.”
“Outside ASWU I briefly served as a student advisory board member for the board of education. I’ve also been a tour guide for two years and served as the tour guide coordinator this year, and was a Whitworth fellow last year.”
How do you hope to shape the ASWU team next year, differently from the past?
“I think that’s a hard question, because the last two presidents have been fantastic. I would love to focus on burnout amongst the team. All college students experience burnout, especially student leaders, but they’re expected to go through anyway and bear it. I want to focus on overall health of the team, encouragement, and motivation, while also making sure that we’re sufficiently trained, because it feels like we go through so much during training that a lot of it is forgotten. With so much info coming at you at one time, it’s hard to remember it all, so when it comes time to use that info, it’s hard to remember what to do. I want to figure out new ways to help keep that information in [sic] so that our ASWU members aren’t feeling overwhelmed and lost within their positions.”
What three goals do you have for the year, or changes you want to effect on campus?
“The first one would be more transparency with the university itself. This year with a new president working with the board of trustees, this is super important. A lot of students don’t realize what people in administration do, and therefore they don’t realize what the university is doing. This is not administration’s fault, but I want to help allow for more transparency so that students are educated on what their university is doing.
…I want to help allow for more transparency so that students are educated on what their university is doing.
“Secondly, I want to support students as a whole in regards to burnout and mental health. Burnout and mental health are super important and all college students face them; but it doesn’t have to be that way. I want to work to improve campus in that sense and overall create a community of support, love, and grace.
“Thirdly, reflective of my experience with the school safety committee, I want to promote safety. Safety goes along with mental health; if you don’t feel safe on campus you don’t thrive. With this, I want to work on creating a self-defense course for PE credit, and foster transparency between students and the security team, looking into how does safety affect different groups on campus, whether gender, sexual orientation, race, and factors like that. All of our students have a right to feel safe here.”
Is there anything else the student body should know about you?
“I would say I’m someone who cares a lot about this university, and someone who cares a lot about the people here; that’s one of the main reasons why I came here. I want to work to improve that community and make it a better experience for everyone who is here, and everyone who will be here later on.”