Houston Summers starts to fill out cabinet

The Student Congress Rules and Judiciary Committee appointed three members of Student Body President-elect Houston Summers’ executive board at its meeting Monday.

The committee appointed Rachel Gogal as vice president, Lee Beckman as treasurer and Paige Waltz as secretary. Summers picked the three from a pool of candidates chosen by a selection committee.

Gogal is the current policy chairwoman of Student Programming and Outreach. The junior helped with Chancellor Carol Folt’s installation in 2013 and said she wants to make Folt more accessible to the student body.

Gogal co-wrote Summers’ platform and helped with debate prep during campaign season. She said, although she is familiar with Summers’ platform, the two did not meet until the campaign.

“We weren’t friends going into it, which I think is strong. In the past, we’ve seen presidents choose their besties,” Gogal said.

She said she wants to have a better relationship with Student Congress, which has been at odds with current Student Body Vice President Kyle Villemain.

“I don’t know why in the past it has been such a struggle, and it’s sad,” Gogal said.

Beckman is a sophomore business major who worked with Andrew Powell’s administration on academic affairs.

Beckman said he shadowed current treasurer Brittany Best to learn about the position. He said he has experience with the Student Fee Audit Committee, which examines the fees students are required to pay each year.

Next year, Beckman wants to take a look at athletic and transit fees. The bus system, he said, is in need of an update, and Beckman is looking to the transit fee to fill the gap.

“I have the education and experiences from (the Student Fee Audit Committee) that would directly translate into becoming a successful student body treasurer,” he said.

Waltz, appointed secretary, is a first-year master’s student in the School of Government.

She said she is familiar with day-to-day secretarial duties from her time in student government at Virginia Tech, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in interior design and political science.

Last summer, she was a press and communications intern for the U.S. House of Representatives. After drafting press releases and creating graphics for social media, she said she is confident she will be able to bring a new face to student government.

“Being that I am new to this campus, just in my short time here, I kind of think this student government needs a rebranding,” she said.

The Rules and Judiciary Committee will hear from three more of Summers’ executive board picks next week.

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