After serving eight years in the United States Air Force and four years in the U.S. Army, current student government Chief of Staff Robert Ferguson is making a run for student body president.
Ferguson refers to himself as a ‘nontraditional student’ because of his military experience, which led him to the loss of a leg and a battle with post-traumatic stress disorder.
These challenges, he said, not only guided him to student government, but gave him the experience he needed to lead.
“I used to be kind of standoffish…because of my military issues that I had…but this experience has really opened me up,” Ferguson said. “I work with the other senators because there are obligations that each senator has to deal with. I try to work with them the best way I can to accommodate their schedules but still get what they have to done. Being chief of staff, time management is the biggest thing.”
As chief of staff, Ferguson prides himself in his accomplishments regarding student safety, especially the safety of the disabled.
“I have been an intricate part in getting ADA advancement put on this campus along with safety items that we find on the safety walks,” Ferguson said. “But I have my fingers in just about every project that goes on except for [Bearkat] All Paws In.”
If elected, Ferguson said he plans to continue operating SGA as it has this past year, concentrating on student benefits.
“[If elected, I plan to] continue with everything that we’ve started this year with the current student government body and the executive officers,” Ferguson said. “One of the main things that I want to work on with the city is to get a student discount card for all the restaurants in town.”
Ferguson said that if he doesn’t win the presidency, he still plans on playing an active role in SGA.
“I’ve always been here for the students,” Ferguson said. “Even when last year student government was a joke, I could have very easily walked away but I was so bent on making sure that all the students on this campus are taken care of. Our students’ safety is at the foremost in the front of my mind.”