On March 9 at 1:30 p.m., the Utah Tech University Institute of Politics announced the 2030-2024 student body president, vice president of academics, and vice president of clubs and organizations.
Student body president
Jose Toral-Martinez
“Right now I’m still I disbelief. I’m beyond thankful for my campaign team that helped me through this journey. I have so many mixed emotions, but mainly, I’m just really happy. Took a couple times but I finally did it. I’m excited to get to work and be an advocate for the entire student body.”
As student body president, Toral wants to improve diversity on campus, create a more open-door policy and focus on student involvement.
Toral also wants to be an advocate for diversity in the Board of Trustees, and he wants to build a stronger relationship with the Center of Inclusion and Belonging to provide more inclusivity to Utah Tech’s students.
By creating a more open-door policy, Toral hopes to provide a safe and welcoming environment to Utah Tech students. He also wants to be able to help students find the resources they need on-campus.
Vice president of academics
Aileigh Hansen
“I am really proud of myself for putting in so much work for my campaign. I am so grateful for all of the support from so many students throughout the election process and am excited to get to work. Students leadership is something that I am passionate about, and I look forward to forming new relationships with students, faculty and community members and partners.”
As vice president of academics, Hansen wants to create more inclusivity on campus, rebuild trust with the St. George community, have more transparency, and have more engagement with transfer students, and help freshman with graduation planning.
Hansen acknowledges Utah Tech lost trust and relationships with members of the community. As vice president of academics, Hansen wants to regain trust within the community and build stronger relationships while paying homage to “Utah’s Dixie.”
Lastly, Hansen wants to focus on engagement. She said Utah Tech is continuing to grow and many of the incoming students are transfer students and freshman. She wants to help these students create a smooth transition into college while also helping them plan for their graduation.
Vice president of clubs and organizations
Evie Barfuss
“I would not be where I am now with out the support of loved ones, friends, even complete strangers. I feel trusted, and hope I can maintain and build that trust aside from going to club events and still helping out this year. I plan to first focus on building a well-balanced team together, so we can help as many clubs and students as possible in becoming.”
As vice president of clubs and organizations, Barfuss wants to focus on how each student at Utah Tech has something they want to become, which is why her campaign is “BEECOME.” Barfuss said bees are a good representation of working hard and bringing people together, which is exactly what she wants to do as vice president of clubs and organizations.
Barfuss wants Utah Tech’s students share their future plans and goals with her, so she can help get them to where they want to be in life.
