Third-year College student Clay Dickerson was inaugurated as Student Council president by outgoing president and fourth-year College student, Valentina Mendoza Gonzalez, at a Student Council transition ceremony Sunday. Fourth-year College student Princess Wuraola Olubuse-Omisore and second-year Commerce student Michael Mitchell were also sworn into their positions of vice president for administration and vice president for organizations, respectively.
All three incoming executive members ran on the Brighter Tomorrow ballot — which advocated for equity, unity and empowerment. Dickerson spoke about his optimism for the future of the University and shared the sense of community he feels at the University.
“There's something really unique about the University of Virginia,” Dickerson said. “About the people we meet here, [who] with a fervor for servant leadership, a fervor for life. We love what we do. We pursue happiness, diversity. And that's why I decided to run.”
Wuraola Olubuse-Omisore and Mitchell were both sworn in by Dickerson following his speech. As incoming VPA, Wuraola Olubuse-Omisore highlighted her desire to follow in the footsteps of Brookelyn Mitchell, outgoing VPA and fourth-year College student, who Wuraola Olubuse-Omisore said had many successes during her term. Mitchell also said he has appreciated the guidance he’s received from Ryan Bowers, outgoing VPO and fourth-year Commerce student.
“[This is] a community that supports its students, prompts involvement, and really places heavy emphasis on the student experience as a whole,” Mitchell said. “I'm incredibly grateful to have grown up here, and my mission is to share what makes U.Va. so special and so unique to every single student.”
The Brighter Tomorrow Campaign ran on specific goals to establish initiatives like Cavalier Care, which would be an agency in the already existent Support and Access Services Branch to provide students with dental insurance and other health-related aid. They also campaigned to provide funding to more student groups in an effort to increase the number of organizations students can be a part of.
At the event, the outgoing executive members also reflected on their time within Student Council, highlighting that the Council is a place for students to grow as well as represent and advocate for every student at the University. In her testament, Mendoza Gonzalez spoke about the importance of developing a supportive community at the University.
“Education is not just about personal education,” Mendoza Gonzalez said. “This big, growing project is a commitment to making tomorrow better for everybody. It’s about creating a space where students are empowered to ask themselves, ‘who am I?’”
Two other executive members also spoke at the ceremony. Lily Dorathy, director of coalition engagement and third-year Batten and College student, and Emily Frost, director of University relations and second-year College student will both resume the same positions on the executive committee next year. Dorathy and Frost similarly highlighted the incredible work of the Council and emphasized their appreciation to be able to contribute to a community that does so much for the student body.
In her role, Frost began an initiative to publish bi-weekly newsletters that compile recent accomplishments made within the Council and promote events happening around Grounds, like career fairs or CIO programs. During her testament, Frost highlighted the newsletter for being able to showcase the work Student Council does each day.
“I think it’s far more productive to ask, ‘what doesn’t the Student Council do?’, then to ask, ‘what does the Student Council do?’” Frost said.
Also sworn in Sunday was the full representative body of the Student Council.
Student Council convened for the first general body meeting of the term — under the new administration of Dickerson, Mitchell and Wuraola Olubuse-Omisore — Tuesday at 6:30 p.m.
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