New SGA leadership emphasizes accountability, transparency

By ASHLEE THOMPSON The Breeze

The new leadership of JMU’s Student Government Association (SGA) — student body president and vice president, executive treasurer and student representative to the Board of Visitors — are planning for the year based on their goals and experience of past leadership.

Senior Nate Hazen, the 2023-24 student vice president, said she values events and eventplanning and hopes to increase attendance at traditional JMU events in her new gig.

One such event is the Ring Premiere, an SGAsponsored event when sophomores can see the unveiling of their class ring. She plans to bring more attention to JMU traditions, Forman said.

“I really think the traditions at JMU are super important, and because of [COVID-19], they haven’t been as prominent,” Forman said in March. “I’m really hoping the student body can get more involved with traditional events at JMU.”

While Forman will focus on bringing back and increasing attendance at traditional events, the previous vice president, Carlin Bumgarner, a senior psychology major, used her role to increase mental health awareness after COVID-19 isolated students.

Bumgarner said in March 2022 that she planned to advocate for more mental health resources on campus and to have more inclusive dining options on campus. Bumgarner decided to implant her mental health goals into the events on campus, such as Purple Out, Madison Majesties and the Madison Vision Teaching Awards.

SGA spent all of the funding money they had available, he said before his election.

Market’s finance team supported more than 17 different on-campus organizations through program grants and contingency funds, the latter of which emptied out in late March. Market and his team banded together and kept giving out funds to organizations on campus by pulling money out of a reserve fund.

Haynicz said he sees the SGA running out of contingency funds as a “good problem to have” because it shows that clubs want to do things for their organizations.

In March, Abigail Cannella, 2023-24 student representative to the Board of Visitors (BoV), committed to increase communication between students and the BoV to ensure the student body knows what’s going on with the university’s governing bodies.

To adhere to this goal, Cannella, a senior, said she’s working on a bill of opinion to petition the BoV to add a student seat to it, with the hope of eventually bringing the change to other schools in Virginia. She said she wants to continue bringing the community together like her predecessor Xaiver Williams did, stating after the election that his work was “admirable.”

During his time as student representative, Williams attended open BoV meetings and was the point of contact between students and the Board.

In a 2022 interview, Williams called himself a “bridge-builder” due to his two-year-long stint as the BoV’s student representative and the “honest conversations” he held with many students over the years said. “They’re not competing concepts.” body president, said in a May interview that he was “counting down the days” until he assumed his position — something he has always wanted and is “honored and humbled” to hold. The most exciting part of the job is simultaneously being a student and holding a role to serve the student body, Hazen said.

Hazen focused his election campaign on experience, accountability and transparency. He was class president and an academic senator, roles he said have helped him gain the experience and intelligence needed to be student body president.

“No matter if it's the White House or a club on JMU’s campus, the word ‘president’ is seen to be serious,” Hazen said. “A very important part of leadership is finding that balance between professionalism and fun.”

Shawdee Bakhtiari (’23), former student body president, has advised Hazen as he steps into her former role, Hazen said.

“I've spoken about the importance of having personal connections and friendships and how it benefits the workplace environment,” Hazen said. “I have said those things — Shawdee has done those things.”

Both Hazen and Bakhtiari share the belief that student advocacy and personal connections should be at the forefront of any leadership position. Before she was elected last year, Bakhtiari pledged to bridge the gap between the JMU and Harrisonburg communities during her term. She also said she’d use her position to advocate for underrepresented students.

Hazen called Bakhtiari the “perfect example of what a leader is supposed to do,” saying that his administration has already benefited because of her actions.

Junior Faith Forman, the 2023-24 student body

Bumgarner said Forman has already “stepped into the role” by picking the new leadership team with the help of the other major position-holders of SGA.

Bumgarner was recently elected as the new Speaker of the Senate, a position she said she’s “so honored” to be chosen for.

Due to her experience as student body vice president, Bumgarner said she “knows the ins and outs” of the SGA and will make it her mission to ensure transparency throughout the organization and to inform the student body about what the SGA can do for them.

“During my time as student body vice president, I grew so much. I learned more than I thought I would, and I feel that I have a valuable skill set because of it,” Bumgarner said. “I truly couldn’t be more excited [to be Speaker of the Senate]. I’m still giddy about it, to tell you the truth.”

After serving as a finance committee member during the 2022-23 school year, senior Matt Haynicz said in March he’s confident and passionate about his new role as the executive treasurer.

He said he wants to focus on supporting students by informing them of on-campus resources and minimize the strain finances can cause students. During his tenure, Haynicz said he’d like the SGA to use a “fresh perspective” when approving or rejecting fund requests and hopes that all funds will be given out.

Haynicz’s predecessor, Brandon Market, had a similar plan for his term. He wanted to support JMU’s student organizations on campus through funding and to make sure the

CONTACT Ashlee Thompson at thomp6ab@ dukes.jmu.edu. For more coverage of JMU and Harrisonburg news, follow the news desk on Twitter @BreezeNewsJMU.