Axel Kylander - President
What progress have you made on your Cabinet duties as outlined in the LeadMN bylaws?
Over the course of October, I undertook a wide variety of activities in my role. I visited several campuses for Hunger Free Campus Award Ceremonies, and it has been a pleasure and honor to visit these campuses, recognize their work, and see the progress they have made in fighting food insecurity. At my monthly meeting with Chancellor Malhotra, we discussed several topics, but most prominently the System Office's supplemental budget request for the state legislature, which includes some areas of overlapping interest, as well as continuing discussion of the System's response to the pandemic and vaccine education efforts, which have been, from our perspective and feedback from campuses, lacking. I also testified to the Board of Trustees on this budget request, citing both good provisions in it and a consultation process for this budget request that is in need of improvement. Last month also featured our October Student Leadership Summit, which drew a significant amount of attention for me to prepare for. However, I'm extremely happy with how the conference went. I also had the honor of going out to DC on behalf of my fellow students to join an advocacy effort to save the federal free college plan. While that effort seems to be unsuccessful, at least for now, it was work that needed to be done, and I'm optimistic we will find other routes to making college more affordable.
What have you done or what is your plan to get students more involved with LeadMN?
In addition to the necessary work of conference outreach, I see many opportunities to get students more involved with LeadMN through campus visits, such as the Hunger Free Campus awards ceremonies. These provide a clear example of the kind of impact LeadMN's work can have. I am also planning to bring back the "Fireside Chat" virtual events I held last year. These relaxing discussion spaces seemed like a great way to feel more connected as a student community in between conferences, and I hope they will have a similar positive impact for students this year.
Outline your biggest achievement this month?
There were a lot of major events in October, but I think the achievement I'm most proud of is one to share with the LeadMN staff, Cabinet, and our fellow students, and that is how well the October conference went. From all the engagement and fun and conversations people were having, it sounded like a conference from the old days, when we'd have a couple hundred people instead of a few dozen, proving that passion matters far more than numbers ever will. I was also very happy with how my workshop on power dynamics in student leadership turned out, and hope to find ways to adapt it to future events, as I think it's a very important topic for student leaders to explore in a group environment.
David Mesta - Vice President
What progress have you made on your Cabinet duties as outlined in the LeadMN bylaws?
I traveled to 6 college campuses for either the Flu Vaccine Clinics or to give out the Hunger Free Campus awards. I attended a meeting to discuss the MinnState Goal 7 final proposal with the Senior Vice Chancellor for feedback. I also attended the MinnState Academic Affairs Council meeting and was elected Co-Chair of the council. Axel and I met with the chancellors to discuss more topics at the meeting. I helped prepare and also lead a workshop on the last day of October conference. I also held a Platform Committee meeting with new PC members and have a full and active committee to begin working with throughout the year.
What have you done or what is your plan to get students more involved with LeadMN?
I traveled to Normandale Community College, SCC - Faribault, Minneapolis College, Central Lakes College - Brainerd, and North Hennepin Community College to help table and present the Hunger Free Campus award. This was a chance to connect with students from each campus and to have a presence to build further connections. At the October conference I was able to meet so many amazing student leaders, build connections, and 7 students were elected to serve on Platform Committee who I will be working with throughout the year.
Outline your biggest achievement this month?
My biggest achievement was presenting a workshop on the last day of the October conference and finally having a Platform Committee with 6 representatives to begin working on business items like the legislative agenda for 2022 legislative session.
Ali Tomashek - Public Relations Coordinator
What progress have you made on your Cabinet duties as outlined in the LeadMN bylaws?
This month, I helped execute Scholarship Week by brainstorming social media with the Communications team. I also visited the Fergus Falls and Moorhead campuses to share information about LeadMN scholarships and help facilitate flu shot clinics. I took meeting minutes for Cabinet, GC, and PC meetings. I also participated in Cultural Sensitivity training with the team. Hosted a workshop and presentation on Support for Scholarship Success at the LeadMN Student Leadership Summit October 21st. Also, I opened the event by presenting the New Student Orientation to introduce students to LeadMN, the staff, cabinet, the GC and PC committees and our mission as a community run by student leaders. Lastly, I had the honor of presenting the Hunger Free Campus Award to my own campus: North Hennepin Community College.
What have you done or what is your plan to get students more involved with LeadMN?
Visiting a couple campuses in October was fun and I heard a lot about how interested students are in scholarships and making college more affordable for everyone. Promoting LeadMN's scholarships really got students interested and engaged in the work we do. I did so much at the October Student Leadership Conference, I really tried my hardest to speak with every student there, and I will at every conference in the future! Asking questions and getting students to open up about their experiences was amazing. Getting to know students on a more personal level, hearing their stories, and encouraging them to speak up and step into leadership positions was heartwarming and exciting! I had the privilege of driving a group of students home and we discussed all that they had learned from the conference workshops and how excited they were to attend another event in the future. My plan in the future is to reach out to more students to talk about how they liked our events, what they would like to see more of, and ask how we can better help them lead at the schools. As well as promoting attendance to our regional meetings coming up in November and December and the next awesome conference in January! Crunch time is on the way in our academic season, so I'd like to send a wave of motivation and determination to all the students out there working hard and studying, we got this!
Outline your biggest achievement this month?
My biggest achievement was certainly presenting at the October Conference twice, once to introduce LeadMN and another for promoting scholarships and success tips, as well as facilitating my first regional meeting. Being a part of the process, encouraging students in my region to step into leadership roles, was everything I could have hoped for. The engaging discussions about our common struggles around housing, basic needs resources, and college affordability, were exactly the discussions we need to be having to boost our advocacy.
Marcelus Ifonlaja - Treasurer
What progress have you made on your Cabinet duties as outlined in the LeadMN bylaws?
In the month of October we continued the distribution of our Emergency Grants. We also have two nominees for our fiscal committee. I am excited to build the fiscal committee and add some additional perspectives to the team. We also executed our October Conference which was amazing and are continuing into November with our equity month of action.
What have you done or what is your plan to get students more involved with LeadMN?
The connections we made and seeds we planted at the October Conference set the tone for this year. It was not as large as previous conferences but we had the opportunity to connect deeper and spend more time getting to know each other. I think my focus this year while always looking to engage new students is to spend as much or more time investing in the students that are engaged and providing the best experience to them so that they can continue to build upon this organization.
Although I am no longer presiding over the Metro North Region, I do want to reengage with the region specifically and continue to reengage students there. I also feel the need to be a presence in Greater Minnesota, as I noticed there are some regions lacking representation.
Outline your biggest achievement this month?
My biggest achievement this month is the fact that I got the chance to speak to virtually (if not) all students at the leadership summit. I really loved sharing the good vibes with my fellow peers and taking some time to grow together. The October Conference was a reminder of why we do this work and I won't let go of that.
Cody Gunsalus - Student-At-Large Platform Committee Representative
What progress have you made on your GC or PC duties as outlined in the LeadMN bylaws?
I went to the October Conference and shared during the preceding online PC meeting that we should try to attract more of the schools that have gone dark by starting to focus on enrollment LeadMN with Leaders from their local tech/community colleges going to high schools talking about something other than a university education.
What have you done or what is your plan to get students more involved with LeadMN?
Contacted representatives making sure they knew about the upcoming conference for the north and helping some register.
What is happening on the campuses in your region?
A lot of push back on vaccine opportunities and free testing.
What are you doing to help get new students involved?
Keeping people talking about LeadMN and help prepare them little by little to talk with legislators.
Madeline Copeman - Platform Committee Representative
What progress have you made on your GC or PC duties as outlined in the LeadMN bylaws?
I have registered and am preparing for the Fall Northern Regional Meeting. Throughout this past month I have also been working to get student perspective on Basic Needs. Our campus was also recently re-designated as a Hunger-Free Campus.
What have you done or what is your plan to get students more involved with LeadMN?
In each of our Student Senate meetings I make sure to talk thoroughly about the LeadMN opportunities that are coming up. I also have been doing my best to post and send out flyers to our current students.
What is happening on the campuses in your region?
The Fall Regional Meetings are coming up so I am very much looking forward to hearing from other campuses about what they are doing in terms of advocacy and student needs.
What are you doing to help get new students involved?
We recently had a very successful Basic Needs event and plan to do more of them in the future and during these events we plan to do little breaks promoting different committees, events, and clubs that are offered.