Student Government Association executive secretary candidate Kelsey Kurth said she has been exposed to what freshmen expect out of college due to her experience this academic year as director of First Year Council, a body of first-year students who represent the freshman class in the SGA.

“They’re expecting to become part of something and to have their ideas heard,” she said.

Connecting students to outlets of involvement when First Year Council is not an option is an important step toward ensuring that freshmen can find fulfillment during their initial year at the Capstone, she said.

Many of those outlets exist within the SGA and can be staffed by students who do not make the cut for First Year Council, she said.

If elected to the office of executive secretary, Kurth said she would communicate with the following director of First Year Council to guide students into the committees and director positions that are abundant in the SGA.

Her experience as director of First Year Council qualifies her for an executive position, she said.

“Being the director of First Year Council in itself shows that I am ready to handle an executive office,” she said. “I thought I could handle a little more responsibility.”

Kurth said she hopes to continue the advancements in transparency and accountability the current SGA administration has progressed toward.

Among the benchmarks established by this year’s SGA are the internal and external newsletters sent to SGA members and the student body, respectively, and the SGA website that informs students of legislation.

“I think it is crucial to have the legislation of the First Year Council and the Senate shown on the website to show what’s going on day by day,” she said.

Keeping the website up to date, Kurth said, will help to instill a confidence in the ability of the SGA to represent the student body in an accountable manner.

She said she hopes to have students become more knowledgeable about the SGA and its activities via the SGA website.

“I can see they may not know what the SGA is doing, what the SGA is about or that the SGA could help them,” she said. “I think updating the website can help students to gather information about their SGA.”

Kurth said she hopes to work on a campaign next year, if elected to the position of executive secretary, that will encourage students to sign up for the SGA newsletters. Reformatting the newsletters and including creative advertising may persuade students to register for them, she said.