Courtesy of Annalise Anderson | The Crow’s Nest
By Sean Schrader
The past few years have been hard on all of us.
At a school like USF St. Petersburg, the core elements of what makes this campus so unique were put on pause to ensure COVID-19 was not rapidly spread throughout the community.
At the height of this crisis when we were all navigating unchartered waters, it was the USF community that helped keep this campus going and made sure that a focus on student success was still the university’s ultimate priority.
Thankfully, those very challenging times are behind us –– and like with anything in the past, it is important to reflect and think about how things could have been different.
Everyone did the best they could during the pandemic, but with virtual events fully utilized, the student experience was undoubtedly altered, and with it, the students’ roles in shaping the future of USF.
Student Government (SG) often receives the perception of being a stuffy group of student leaders, but as USF St. Petersburg’s student governor, I’m here to tell you that’s not the case on this campus.
Now that we’re fully back together as a student body, SG can play an instrumental role in your success at this institution.
SG identifies three key areas of importance for the student body: sustainability, community connectedness and student advocacy.
Those are all great buzz words, but tangible action must meet those words to make them a reality.
Thankfully, SG has had a great summer working with our team, USF faculty and community colleagues to create different opportunities to ensure we deliver on these areas of importance.
Specifically, when it comes to sustainability, we are excited to be having conversations with student-driven organizations such as the Student Green Energy Fund and the Food Recovery Club.
Protecting our campus’s environment is vital, and when we all take small steps as students, we ensure that it remains ready for future generations.
With the campus located in the heart of downtown St. Petersburg, it’s important to create partnerships between students and local businesses and community organizations.
We are excited to be working with community partners like the Tampa Bay Rowdies soccer team, Habitat for Humanity of Pinellas and West Pasco Counties and the City of St. Petersburg for several hands-on community-based events this fall.
We want to make sure your voices are heard and your input is noted.
When campaigning for the spring election, we found that many students felt their perspectives were being assumed rather than asked directly. We want to change that perception and provide direct vehicles to easily share feedback on USF.
This fall, we will be launching several taskforces designed at looking at student services such as parking, dining and housing.
We’ve set an ambitious agenda to kick off the fall semester, and while we realize there’s a lot of work to do, we also know just how important it is that SG is working for you.
All of the ingredients are here to make the 2022-2023 year at USF St. Petersburg successful, the question is, will you seize this opportunity to get involved?
