SGA President Lillian Sellers: As the semester winds down, the Student Government Association has been hard at work making progress on various initiatives around campus. Additionally, we have been preparing for our leadership transitions at the end of this year, as well as getting ready for electing new senators.
SGA’s spring 2025 President’s Hour was kicked off at 7 p.m. in the Orndorff Theater in the CUB on Monday, Mar. 24. In attendance was Director of Facilities Management Matthew Dominick, Vice President of Student Affairs Lorie Sheetz, Provost Darrell Newton, SUPD Chief Patrick Taylor and Shippensburg University Dining Services General Manager Will Anderson. SU President Patterson was not in attendance as he was recovering from minor surgery.
After completing 27 years at Shippensburg University, Shari Horner has a great deal to be proud of. Horner served for four years as the irector of the Women’s Studies Program, which became the Women’s and Gender Studies Program under her watch, and she was the chair of the English Department for nine years.
As political tensions continue to rise across the country in the wake of the Trump administration’s tumultuous shake-up of the federal bureaucracy, a panel of professors from Shippensburg University’s Political Science Department sought to provide a clarifying overview of the political landscape in 2025. The panel was made up of four professors who offered their perspective and expertise in various areas of political science. The evening was hosted and led by political science Chair Alison Dagnes, who was joined by her colleagues Lonce Bailey, Mark Sachleben and Steven Lichtman.
Democrats from Franklin and Cumberland counties came out in downtown Shippensburg on March 22 to show their distaste for the Trump administration’s policies on a wide range of issues. Around 60 protestors demonstrated around the intersection of King Street and Earl Street, protesting issues like potential cuts to government services like Social Security, attempts to dismantle the Department of Education and other agencies and cutting support to Ukraine.
Shippensburg University welcomed back several alumni for a virtual workshop titled “Peace Corps: Global Opportunities.” Four SU graduates and a Peace Corps recruiter joined Career Center Executive Director Victoria Kerr to discuss their experiences as volunteers for the Peace Corps.
Three new student groups were approved by the Student Government Association (SGA) through unorthodox means after the Student Senate failed to meet quorum at its March 6 public meeting. To avoid leaving the groups in limbo until the next SGA public meeting in April, the Executive Leadership Committee (ELC) chose to adopt an emergency motion pursuant to Article V, Section IV of the SGA Constitution.
At the March Student Government Association meeting, SUPD Police Chief Patrick Taylor gave the student senate updates about issues discussed at previous President’s Hours. Those issues included alleged racial disparities in traffic stops and the installation of speed bumps on campus.
The results of the spring 2025 Student Government Association (SGA) officer elections were announced on Feb. 28. Starting in late April, SGA will be led by a new group of executives.
Approximately 100 residents showed up at the Firefighters Activity Center Tuesday night to participate in a community town hall and hear updates about Shippensburg’s future. Moderated by Chamber of Commerce Chair Wendy Kipe, the night featured updates from a dozen individuals, including Shippensburg Mayor Kathy Coy, Shippensburg University President Charles Patterson and Shippensburg Police Department Chief of Police Thomas Young, among others.
SU’s Student Government Association began its first meeting of the academic year by swearing in Residence Hall Association Senator Ayden Kurtek. He was met with many warm welcomes from numerous SGA members. “I’m glad to see a senator in an RHA position who is so passionate about the needs of students living in residence halls on campus,” Transfer Senator Daniel McCleary said.
Officials from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection briefed Shippensburg residents Thursday about trace amounts of contaminated water detected in Middle Spring Creek. Limited amounts of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly referred to as PFAS, were detected in the creek in August of 2023, according to environmental protection specialist Crystal Wolf.
Shippensburg University’s Council of Trustees approved upcoming rates for on-campus housing and dining during its first meeting of 2025. Proposed for a vote by Dean of Students Lorie Sheetz, the council approved housing and dining costs for the 2025-26 academic year and housing costs for the 2026-2027 year.
Speeches for the 2025-2026 Student Government Association leadership election took place this past Thursday, Feb. 20, at 5 p.m. Four SGA candidates delivered speeches at McFeely’s in hopes of securing an elected position.
Shippensburg University Student Trustee Colin Arnold: "I hope that everyone has had a good start to the Spring 2025 semester so far. Spring break is almost here, something to look forward to." "A lot of amazing things have been happening on campus as well as off, representing Shippensburg University well. Before I address the recent Council of Trustees meeting, I’d like to highlight some of those things."
Lately, I’ve been a traveler. By traveler, I mean that I have been taking a trip or two a month to see things that I do not see every day. Expanding horizons is humbling, and personally, I know I have thought plenty about how vast our humanity is from these recent experiences.
Shippensburg University’s Forum met on Tuesday, Feb. 18 in the Ezra Lehman Memorial Library. The forum reviews and discusses matters related to curriculum, student life and university policies. The University Curriculum Committee, in charge of regulating undergraduate and graduate classes, briefed forum members on the courses that have not been taught for five years that are set to be dropped.
The Student Government Association (SGA) Budget and Finance Committee released on Friday their draft of the 2025-2026 operating budget. Student groups can see the draft budget awards in an email sent by SGA President Lillian Sellers on Friday morning. A physical copy of the document has also been posted publicly in the display window outside the SGA office (CUB 201).
A dozen Shippensburg University alumni were welcomed back to their alma mater last Tuesday to discuss their diverse professional experiences with current students. The event, titled “Working while Black,” was sponsored by the Career Center and the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs (MSA). WITF on-air host and producer Marquis Lupton served as a facilitator for the evening’s discussion.
Gettysburg College professor Scott Hancock, visited Shippensburg University to give an interactive presentation about the national theme of Black History Month on Wednesday evening in the CUB MPR.
