Grand Valley State University’s Student Senate held its annual State of the Student Body Address last Thursday in the Cook-DeWitt Auditorium.
At the event, Student Senate leadership spoke on behalf of the student body, providing an overview of key initiatives, emerging priorities and ongoing advocacy efforts, while reflecting on the current state of the experience at GVSU. The organization also outlined goals for the year ahead and reaffirmed its role in amplifying voices across the University.
Student Senate President Evan Jackson kicked off the event with an introductory speech regarding the bridges being built between the senate, University administration and broader campus community. Jackson emphasized progress being made by the senate and the importance of representation.
“Institutional credibility does not begin in external rules — it begins internally,” said Jackson. “The Student Senate represents over 22,000 students. Representation is not symbolic. When a student runs on a platform, that platform becomes a commitment, not a campaign slogan. This year, we raised the internal standard on what it means to serve.”
Advocacy Chair Genna Wright shared the senate’s efforts to foster community on campus. This year, the Advocacy Committee hosted its first-ever disability panel, raised awareness for suicide prevention, provided over 115 meals to the community and partnered with Replenish to promote access to basic necessities.
“For us, advocacy is not always reactive — many times it’s proactive,” Wright said. “This year, advocacy also meant recognizing that student success depends on accessing needs.”
Policy Chair Cera McDonough says that Student Senate will continue to create an environment where everyone can thrive in all facets of campus life.
“From campus dining, housing (and) public safety to sustainability, there is such a wide scope, so the question becomes ‘where do we begin?’” McDonough stated. “The story of our work is not about the meetings we attend, it is about the infrastructure we influence, relationships strengthened and the impact we’ve made.”
The Policy Committee has worked this year to improve the quality of on-campus public safety. The committee met with the Department of Public Safety, and aimed to make improvements across departments, including parking accessibility.
The Public Relations Committee worked with various student organizations and media groups to spread the senate’s presence and provide access to resources, even calling attention to the Lanthorn. Public Relations Chair Sophie Gemmen explained the importance of increasing awareness of the senate’s initiatives and presence.
“The more students know of us, the easier it will be for them to share their needs and priorities,” Gemmen said.
The Public Relations Committee prioritizes this direct line of communication with students, and aims to update their website regularly with updates.
“It’s not easy being a college student juggling classes, internships, jobs and projects, and it’s not often we can expect students to build time into their calendars to check in with student government,” said Gemmen. “It’s important for us to meet students where they’re at, and now, information is just a couple clicks away.”
The Allocations Committee focused its efforts on student life and multicultural outreach strategies. They managed to allocate over $115,000 to over 72 organizations and funded over $30,000 in student organization travel fees.
Vice President, Ty Vanlerberghe, closed out the address with a final statement, recapping what makes the GVSU community uniquely great and the purpose of the senate.
“When we talk about the state of the student body, we are not simply recounting a list of initiatives,” Vanlerberghe said. “We are telling a story of an organization. Our organization, an organization that chose to engage, lead (and) above all else, believes that student voice is not peripheral to shared governance at our University, it is central to it.”
