Winthrop has officially welcomed new student body leaders Ximena Perez-Velazco and Jared Garrett. Ximena Perez-Velazco is a senior human nutrition major and will be serving as student body president alongside Vice President Jared Garrett, a senior sports management major.
Perez-Velazco has been serving on the Council of Student Leadership for four years and has been appointed committee chair co-person of various organized events in previous years. This will be Garrett’s second year serving in the CSL. Last year, he served on the Traditions Committee and helped assemble events such as the MLK Day of Service.
According to Perez-Velazco, the CSL’s main priority is to be a support system for the student body. The organization’s ideals are based on the core values mentioned in Winthrop’s dedication to excellence, which includes standards centered around academics and morals. The CSL is a liaison between the student body and the president and board of trustees and is here to offer assistance to students, whether it be academic support or assisting a student organization that plans to serve the community.
“Our job here is to support students, be here for students and serve as a voice and an ear for the Rock Hill community and Winthrop Community,” Perez-Velazco stated.
Garrett and Perez-Velazco said they are ready to uphold those values within the Winthrop community. They addressed implementing President Daniel Mahony’s Winthrop Plan to support inclusive excellence, promote global and community engagement, have diversity in faculty and staff, make provisions for student facilities, programs and technology and establish financial stability.
“We want the university to get accustomed to [the Winthrop Plan], so they know that this is how the higher leadership is trying to implement plans to help us and make us feel welcomed and make it a student–centered university,” Garrett clarified.
One of the most important concepts that Garrett and Perez-Velazco said they would like students to understand is the relationship between them and higher leadership on campus and how that is expressed through the five pillars in President Mahony’s Winthrop Plan.
“We want to work from the inside first, fix our home, clean our home, and then invite everyone else into it,” Perez-Velazco explained.
The new student leaders said that they want students to know that the council is not only a support system, but a resource for the student body.
“We offer financial support to student groups if what they’re doing is for the good of the community,” Perez-Velazco stated about the council’s allocation system for student organizations.
Garrett and Perez-Velazco described their plan to promote diversity and inclusiveness as a way to consider all backgrounds of the Winthrop student population. Perez-Velazco said that her goal is to offer more support for minority groups and students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds.
“Winthrop is a very diverse campus. [We want to] make sure everyone has their safe zones and everyone is accounted for,” Garrett added about his goal for the campus during their term.
Both new student body leaders agreed that they want to use their platform to better the community by sustaining the values of Winthrop while bridging the gap between students and the university’s leadership.
“Being in a leadership position is not just about the title; it’s about actually giving back and serving in the community, and that’s something I’m really passionate about,” Garrett added.
If you would like to engage with student leaders and share your opinions or concerns, the Council of Student Leadership meetings are open to all students at “The Fishbowl” in Digs 114 on Mondays at 7 p.m.