By: Ashley Bergner
4/26/2007

To be a good leader, you must first be a servant.

Such is the philosophy of sophomore Roman Rodriguez, recently elected president of the Friends University Student Government Association.

“SGA is not all about leading,” he said. “A large part is about being a servant.”

A good president, he thinks, is someone who represents the student body and is willing to serve selflessly. He wants to put the focus on others, not himself.

“Student government is not about me,” he said. “It’s about what God wants for this campus and what students want for this campus.”

Learning leadership

Rodriguez, a graphic design major, has been involved in some form of student government since the sixth grade.

Rodriguez first became involved in student government while attending the Garden City Christian School. Since his class had only nine members, student council involvement was a requirement. He served as vice president and said he liked making decisions and planning events.

Throughout high school, Rodriguez served in various student government positions, including sophomore class president, student council representative and finally student council president.

A new direction

When Rodriguez came to Friends in the fall of 2005, he served as a freshman class senator. Although he enjoyed his time in SGA, he noticed things were not running as efficiently as they could be.

Rodriguez recalled a time he volunteered to organize a Cherry Carnival dance. SGA had considered contracting the work out to a separate company, but two weeks before the event, SGA chose not to go with the plan, deciding it was not cost effective. Rodriguez stepped in to help but wasn’t able to finish setting up for the dance until about five minutes before it started.

The next year, Rodriguez decided to take a break from SGA so he could have a chance to refocus. During his year off, he observed the changes that were taking place in SGA involving the Falcon Activities and Events Committee. He became excited about the new direction SGA was taking and decided to run for president.

“It inspired me to be a part of it,” he said.

He wanted to take his ideas and the things he had learned from his past student government experiences and use them to benefit SGA.

Helping students

As president, Rodriguez hopes to create programs that will truly help students. He has had students come up to him with ideas and suggestions, and he wants students to know that they can come to him at any time and talk to him about their concerns.

“If it’s important enough to the students, it’s important to SGA,” he said.

Rodriguez, along with the other new members of the SGA executive board, recently attended a leadership conference in Philadelphia. As a result, SGA may consider reducing the Senate’s size to help things run more efficiently. A smaller Senate would allow meetings to run more smoothly and would leave more time for discussion, he said.

Advisers at the conference also suggested that Friends SGA develop a signature program it can become known for. Suggestions included a free tax service for students or free movie rentals.

“We really came out with a lot of ideas,” Rodriguez said.

Creating positive change

Rodriguez’s ultimate goal is to get more students involved with campus activities, particularly commuters. He also wants to improve communication between SGA officers and students. This may include setting up suggestion boxes where students can submit ideas or holding monthly forums where students can meet with SGA officers and voice their concerns.

He hopes SGA will continue to become more active and more visible, and he wants to increase student awareness of SGA.

Much of SGA’s work goes on behind the scenes, and many students aren’t aware of all that SGA does, he said. SGA serves as a liaison between the students and the administration at Friends, dealing with issues such as tuition costs. Rodriguez wants students to realize that SGA is their voice and that SGA does have an influence.

“I want SGA to really be looked at as a positive thing,” he said.

Mercedes Hayes, the previous SGA president, thinks she is leaving the position in good hands. Rodriguez is dedicated to his job and cares about SGA concerns, she said.

“I’m very confident in Roman,” she said. “I think he will make an excellent president.”

Rodriguez presided over his first SGA meeting on April 17. He will serve alongside newly elected Vice President Stu Hall, Speaker of the House Marley Amerin, Publicist Jessica Stewart, Business Manager Devona Bird and Secretary  Kellie Moore.