Peter Loganbill, Collegian news editor: “What made you want to run for student body president and why do you think you are the best person for this role?”
Tel Wittmer, candidate for student body president, chair of On-Campus Allocations and junior in secondary education: “I was actually urged by quite a few students who I’ve gotten to know in student government over the last few years, and also a university administrator. I had never really thought about it because I mean, I’ve kind of, I feel like I’ve done a lot to help the university, and that was kind of my goal from the get-go.
“Over time, I thought more and more about the opportunities you have to work with faculty and administrators at a new level as student body president and so definitely the more I thought about it, the more good I thought I could do. So I think, just given my circumstances and background, my ability to work with people could really pay off well and in the role. Again, I think I’ve tried to do my best during my time on campus, getting out of my comfort zone, meeting people and building those relationships with students. And I think if we can do that as, as a president, vice presidential pair of me and Lane [Lundeen], I think that we could definitely improve a lot of things at the university level.”
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Loganbill: “When you are faced with a situation that you really have never experienced anything like it before, that’s like a brand new type of problem, how do you go about that?”
Wittmer: “I’m not the kind of guy that’s ever going to fake something. So, understanding that if I have no idea how to respond to something or know what direction to take, just being honest. I can’t imagine a better way to go about that, but, definitely, I think one of my strengths is I’m definitely a listener first. I’ll definitely take a seat back and understand what’s going on first. But coming together again with everybody once we get to hear from each other and share ideas, I think that’s when I’m much better able to respond to things, is having all the information and taking time to really set some time aside to think about it.”
Loganbill: “What do you want to do after you graduate?”
Wittmer: “Well, that’s what I’m thinking about right now. So, if I do win, and hopefully we do, I’d have to postpone my student teaching because that’s the last semester of my senior year, next year. But [I] have no problems with that. I think I do want to finish off my degree in education. I love my time and experiences in the classroom that I’ve been able to have, but I have been thinking more and more about policy decisions and maybe law school so, not quite sure right now.”
Interested in hearing more about Wittmer’s campaign? Check out the “Collegian Kultivate” podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.
