Story by Paige Effinger, Staff Writer
Photo by Brock Kick/The News
J.T. Payne and Kelly McIndoo are the newly elected Student Government Association president and vice president.
Students had the opportunity to vote for several SGA positions earlier this week through their MyGate account.
The winners were announced on Wednesday at the Center for Student Involvement office in the Curris Center.
Payne and McIndoo both said they are very excited to be elected to their new positions. The pair won about 65 percent of the votes cast by students.
“It’s a very humbling experience for sure,” Payne said. “We are very excited to serve the students of Murray State.”
The pair based their campaign on building a culture that is welcoming and inclusive to all students at Murray State, and they are eager to begin serving the student body.
“We want to start on day one by marketing and filling in the vacancies we’re going to have in SGA with a wide, diverse range of people,” Payne said.
McIndoo said that she hopes they can spread the word on campus about SGA and what the students do.
Before their term goes into effect, Payne said they hope to be an “open ear” as they listen to the concerns of students. Next semester, they plan to hit the ground running.
Along with SGA president, Payne will also serve as Student Regent. McIndoo will serve both as vice president and as Campus Activities Board chairman. However, Payne and McIndoo were already involved on Murray State’s campus, and they believe their past experiences will help them in their positions.
Payne is the president of the College Republicans and a student ambassador for the College of Agriculture. Until he begins his role as president, he will continue his position as senator-at-large in SGA. McIndoo serves as vice president within her sorority, Alpha Omicron Pi.
“We feel that our combined Greek life, academic college, student government and student organization experience really gives us the experience necessary to represent all students at Murray State,” Payne said.
Like the other candidates, Payne said he and McIndoo worked hard on their campaign, and they are looking forward to the next step.
“It was a stressful time,” Payne said. “We’re glad it’s over, and we’re looking forward to continuing on and serving the students of Murray State.”
Payne will take over for outgoing SGA President Tori Wood. McIndoo will step into the position that Madison Jarrett has held for the last year.
Several other SGA positions were decided with this election:
- Vice President of Administration: Kelsey Calhoun
- Vice President of Finance: Bennett Estes
- RCA President: Becca Weyerbacher
- At Large Senators: Rob Dawson, Bethany Waggoner, Kara Marr, Nevan Houser, Chris Reed, Aaron Martin, Nolan Mullican and Suphat Yoopensuk
- Academic College Senators: Landon Hawkins, Tanner Weatherbee and Megan Rohrer (College of Business); Alyssa Brunston (College of Education and Human Services); Cody Hayden, Andrew Kane and Lucas B. Hill (College of Science, Engineering & Technology); Claire Schmitt, Tommy Copeland and John Ryne Winchester (Hutson School of Agriculture); Erica Holt and Emily Weber (School of Nursing & Health Professions)
- Residential College Senators: Heaven Meredith (Clark), Keenan Lautner (Hester) and Camryn Clift (Springer-Franklin)