By Anna Flagg
Reporter

Student government at Baylor has been around since 1913, but the group still plans to raise awareness for the work it does on campus. Zach Rogers, student body president, traveled to send-off parties for future Baylor students and also represented student government at every Line Camp and orientation this summer.

“One of our goals this year has been to increase our presence on campus because through this we can become more available to students,” Rogers said.

Rogers is working to find new ways to poll student opinions on campus and voice them to the administration, he said. Rogers wants to determine the most pressing issues students have and the best way to combat the problems and then present them to university leaders, he said.

Rogers serves with Angela Gray, external vice president, and Michael Lyssy, internal vice president.

Gray’s job is to represent Baylor students to outside entities including the Waco community, other conference schools, alumni, and local, state and federal government.

One of her hopes for the coming year is to involve more students in the Waco community and help them get to know their city, Gray said.

“We have countless fun places to visit, unique restaurants and distinctive shops around town,” Gray said. “I hope to facilitate an awareness of how great it is to live in Waco.”

As internal vice president, Lyssy serves as president of the Student Senate. The Student Senate meets every 5 p.m. Thursday in Cashion 403 in order to discuss pertinent issues. Meetings are open to the public.

Lyssy said he wants to improve the efficiency of the Student Senate and encourage more involvement by building relationships between senators and student organizations.

“Even though we aren’t always in the headlines for proposing revolutionary changes around campus, I hope students realize that we are constantly working behind the scenes for them,” Lyssy said. “We are continuously building upon established relations, nurturing fresh ones, and seeking out better ways and models of expressing student concerns.”

One way these student government leaders get to know the students’ opinions is by setting up an “Issue of the Week” table in the Bill Daniel student center (SUB). There, Student Government representatives can talk with students, hear what they want and build relationships with them. Rogers, Gray and Lyssy say their office doors are always open and they want to hear from students.

Rogers said his favorite part of his role as student body president is “having the opportunity to get to know the movers and shakers of the university on a more personal level.”

“I get to see the actual passion the people that run this university have for the students here,” Rogers said. “It has infused a new passion for Baylor in me.”

Freshman elections are approaching and filing begins this week. There is a mandatory candidate meeting on Sept. 15 in Kaiser Auditorium in the Hankamer Business School of Business.