During my four years at WKU, I had the privilege of serving in the Student Government Association and being a member of WKU’s Forensics Team. After working alongside both Lily Nellans and Brian Anderson as WKU Forensics Team members and observing the work they have done in SGA, I enthusiastically endorse their candidacy for President and Executive Vice President of the WKU SGA.

I have known Lily and Brian since they were a sophomore and freshman in high school, and I have had nothing but respect for them for the past six years. I have watched them grow from articulate high schoolers into passionate advocates for education and human rights. During my four years of SGA, I served alongside four different presidents, and I have no doubt that Lily would be amongst the best student regents we have ever had.

She interacts professionally and respectfully with authority figures and peers alike, yet what sets her apart is her ability to balance this respect and professionalism with a refusal to ignore injustices. She has studied genocide in Bosnia and Israel, fought for the Fairness Ordinance in Bowling Green, and I know she would bring that same fire and passion to defending the rights of students as SGA president. I highly encourage you to read Lily and Brian’s platform of all the issues they will fight for at Nellansanderson2017.wordpress.com.

Perhaps the best feature of Lily and Brian’s ticket is that they have already learned to work together as a team. I have witnessed them agree, disagree and literally compete against each other for national championships. Yet not even disagreement creates real conflict between them because they have built a professional relationship and personal friendship that is deeply rooted in respect of one another. This is what makes great leadership.

Finally, what makes Brian and Lily special is what they are willing to sacrifice to serve the students of WKU. It is entirely possible to be active in forensics and serve in SGA at the same time. But being student regent means that Lily will sacrifice competing at major national tournaments during her senior year to attend Board of Regents meetings.

It means that both of them will have fewer hours to practice before nationals because they are committing their time to serving students. I speak from experience when I say that being an SGA executive board member and a forensics team member is a busy lifestyle. But I am also confident that there are no two people more capable of doing both with excellence.

Lily and Brian’s unreserved willingness to put other students’ needs and dreams before their own is what makes them the best candidates for SGA leadership.

Paige Settles, Class of 2016