Q&A with new SGA President

By Faith Foushee, April 19, 2020

By Nicole Prince

News Editor

Rising senior Sam Carr is the newly elected Student Government Association President for the upcoming academic year. He is a political science major and business administration minor from Boone, North Carolina. He was born and raised, however, in High Point, North Carolina. He attended elementary, middle and high school near High Point University at Wesleyan Christian Academy. He is currently the president of HPU’s junior class.

Carr spoke with the Campus Chronicle about his motivation for running for president, his qualifying experiences and his ambitions for the next year.

 

What are you currently involved in, on and off campus?

I am currently leaving some of my positions to better fulfill my role as SGA President. During my time at HPU, I have been involved in many different roles and organizations. Throughout this past year, we planned a charity kickball tournament that would help raise money for a memorial bench for our dear friend, Matt Levine. 

I have been a Student Justice for the SGA Judicial Board since the second semester of my freshman year. I am also the president and co-founder of HPU’s Young Americans for Freedom, a non-party affiliated political club. We advocate for the conservative voice while also providing a space for all students from all political, race, sexual orientation and religious backgrounds. We advocate for everyone’s first amendment right, no matter their political viewpoint. We have held many events on campus, the largest being our 9/11 Never Forget Project. This year, the event attracted local news attention. We held a vigil at which High Point Mayor Jay Wagner spoke. 

For my community work, I am a Big Brother for Big Brothers Big Sisters of High Point. I have worked with my “little” for three years. It’s a great way for me to give back while building a personal relationship. 

Last fall, I had the privilege of being the deputy campaign manager for Jay Wagner and developed a close relationship with him. I was also the field director and director of communications for Jason Ewing, candidate for Guilford County Commissioner. Although he did not make it past the primary, I gained valuable relationships and connections. I am currently the Deputy Campaign Manager for Sebastian King, candidate for North Carolina’s Senate, District 27. All of this involvement has led me to become SGA President.

 

What made you want to run for President? What pushed you to win?

It was my freshman year. I was looking on HPU Connect for involvement opportunities. I stumbled across SGA, saw the SGA Presidents’ letter to students and learned more about the position and SGA. At that moment, I knew I wanted to be SGA President. I would later run for Freshman Class President and lose. Losing allowed for me to get involved and develop myself, preparing me for this position.

During my sophomore year, I had a conversation with former SGA President, Lyndsey Clos, who encouraged me to run for Junior Class President before SGA President. Last fall, I went to an American Student Government Association National Summit Conference with some fellow SGA representatives. During the conference, I shared my plans of running for president. To my surprise, they all supported me and pushed me. Since then, our team grew from a few into what my executive board is today.

Through it all, I trusted the plan and will of God, believing that he had a plan for my life. None of this would have been possible without Him, my family, my amazing girlfriend, Meghan, my campaign manager, Zach Quimby and my entire executive board.

 

What is your main goal to accomplish as President? What change can you see being made?

My main goal is to expand the SGA to be more than a ‘piggy bank,’ as it is seen by many students. I want to turn it into a place of real change, where students can express concerns, have a place to raise their voice and make it more representative of every corner of campus.

My team and I have so many events and things planned for the upcoming year, including bringing well-known speakers to campus, implementing town halls for students to pose questions and suggestions, making myself available to all students, being transparent with the Senate and the student body about campus-wide issues, tailgating at our sports events and many other activities and events that will allow students to have fun and grow personally and professionally.

 

 How will you involve or communicate with the student body in your future plans?

Many students don’t know, but SGA has an Instagram account that we plan to utilize more to advertise events and things happening on campus. I also plan to communicate with students through email, letting them know about events that we are implementing and other important announcements. I want every student to have my personal contact. They can reach me via phone at (336) 870-2650, via email at sgapresident@highpoint.edu and via Instagram at @carrsam_98 and @sga_highpoint.

 

What is most lacking right now at HPU or with the student body? How will you address it?

Student involvement. I think every student can agree that student involvement is lacking. We will be partnering with Greek organizations to increase awareness about their events. I have added five new positions on my executive board: Student Engagement Chair, Events Chair, Interfraternity Council Chair, Pan-Hellenic Chair and National Pan-Hellenic Chair. They will help to figure out how we can better combat this issue of student involvement.

 

What makes you unique?

 I come prepared with experiences and relationships that I have built across campus with students, faculty, staff and administration. I ran on a platform of “we.” This is not about me; this is about “us.” I can’t do this alone. I need every student to jump on board with us. I want to hear your concerns and wants for this year. Let me know. Meet with me. Email me. Text me. I am here to serve you.

 

What do you think should be HPU’s top priority over the next year?

Student involvement, mental health, diversity and transparency. We plan to be as open as we can with students to provide a home for all. The reality is that not every student feels at home on our campus. Our goal is to change and make this a home where every student feels safe and comfortable. We want to communicate and support our students as much as possible.

 

Is there anything else that HPU can look forward to seeing or hearing about from you?

I was planning on keeping this a surprise, but we are working on having a big get-together when we all return to campus. After all, it will be five months since we last saw each other.