Numerous Student Government Association (SGA) candidates gathered in McFeely’s Café at 5 p.m. on Thursday, April 16, to give speeches on why they should be elected or reelected as senators in Fall 2026.

SGA Senator elections will open on Monday, April 20, at 8 a.m. and will run until Thursday, April 23, at 4 p.m. Students will receive an email from sga@ship.edu on Monday that will provide the link to vote.

The spring 2026 election season is seeing a noticeable increase in participation compared to spring 2025, when only four names were present on the ballot. Fourteen candidates are on the ballot across eight different senator positions this year. Of those candidates, 12 were present to provide speeches on Thursday night.

According to SUSSI Assistant Director Allison Rippeon, Daniel Prachthauser and Caden Kash, candidates for the Class of 2027 and Class of 2028 positions respectively, were absent due to ROTC training obligations.

The full list of candidates, provided by Rippeon, is as follows:

·  College of Arts and Sciences: Max Knickerbocker and Grace Shaffer

·  College of Education and Human Services: Karissa Springer

·  Class of 2027: Tess Naylor, Daniel Prachthauser and Tyler Sherman

·  Class of 2028: Emily Bitters and Caden Kash

·  Class of 2029: Alarice Huff and Caleb Tilden

·  Nontraditional Student: Hollis Zimmerman

·  Commuter Student: Sophie Showers and Marisa Kyner

·  Transfer Student: Josh Lesesne

Sophie Showers, Alarice Huff and Caleb Tilden are each running for reelection into their currently held position.

According to Rippeon, there are no candidates on the ballet for the College of Business, International Student or Graduate Student senator positions at this time.

Student participation was a major topic of Thursday’s speeches. Each of the candidates outlined what they are a part of on campus, and how they plan to increase participation opportunities for students of all backgrounds.

“I want to make sure that Shippensburg University is a place where nontraditional and part-time students are accepted and included, regardless of where they might be in their education, or walk of life,” Zimmerman said.

The two candidates for the Commuter Student Senator position both affirmed their commitment to helping commuter students get more involved on campus.

“I have scheduled a commuter social that’s actually happening next Wednesday, the 22nd, from one to four,” Showers said. “That’s going to be an opportunity for commuter students to get to know each other because there’s not enough opportunities for that to happen.”

Kyner spoke from her experience as a member of the women’s soccer team and commuter student with numerous obligations.

“Balancing being a student athlete, a commuter and a full-time student has shown me how valuable time is. Commuters aren’t always looking for things to do, but just want to know what is worth their time and what they might themselves be interested in. I want to focus on communication, increasing awareness of future opportunities and representing commuter voices,” said Kyner.

Wojnarski asked each speaker how they plan on representing their constituents over their own personal ideals.

“I will continue to be entrenched in the community that I represent,” College of Arts and Sciences candidate Knickerbocker said. “I am part of crew, I am part of the game design club, I have joined the improv troupe here at Shippensburg. To make sure that I am representing these people honestly and fairly, I will talk to them in the places where they discuss the ideas that they want to see in the campus.”

The last question of Thursday afternoon was given by audience member Natalie Nichols, who asked how each candidate handles inflammatory statements made toward them.

“Sometimes they do get to me, so being able to rely on my friends, my support system, to get me through those feelings and to not lash out at that person is very important to me,” Huff said.

Candidate speeches concluded at about 6 p.m.

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