We elect a student body president every year to represent our school. Some still wonder, what exactly does the president do? Or what is his vision for Dixie State University? Each month, we will sit down with the president and discuss what he is doing to help our school.
The Dixie State University student government is looking for more influence from community members.
There has been an added effort this semester to get the community involved with campus events and affairs. When visiting most college towns, you will see school flags, paint on the windows of businesses and bumper stickers on almost every car.
However, that is not the image in St. George, and Student Body President Carlos Morgan, a senior communication major from Santa Clara, is looking to make some changes.
“The support of the community is critical for any school that is growing,” Morgan said.
Morgan said community members are the ones who give extra support at games, help fund scholarships and make an environment that is pleasing to students.
“We want students to go anywhere in St. George and the surrounding areas and feel at home,” Morgan said.
To capture this feeling, Morgan and other student government officers started talking to local businesses and tried gaining their support.
“The business expo we held at the start of the semester was great for us,” Morgan said. “It is a link between the businesses and the school.”
During the Freshman Friday event at the beginning of the semester, businesses gathered together around the Burns Arena and offered deals and information for the upcoming freshman.
Each business that came to the business expo was asked if it would want to offer a deal for DSU students. Businesses that chose to offer students a deal received a “We Are Dixie” sign to hang up in the front window of the store.
“We chose to give them signs because it lets students know that they want them to go to their stores,” Morgan said.
Zions Bank was one of the companies that took advantage of the expo and offered students deals.
“We went because we want students to know that we love to support them,” Zions Bank Manager David Dun said.
Zions Bank offered students the chance to enter into a drawing to win $10,000 by opening a new account with the bank.
Carlos said the business owners have a large influence in the community and will help the school by telling their neighbors and friends what a great school Dixie is.
The student government is also working on making sure the community events involving Homecoming Week stay an integral part of the celebration.
“We love when the community comes to events we put on,” Morgan said. “Homecoming is the best time for them to see what Dixie is all about.”
Student government is working on starting a new tradition at this year’s homecoming.
“We are not allowed to say what exactly the tradition is yet,” Morgan said. “It caters toward the community as well as the students.”
To find out what the new tradition will be, look for This Month With the President in next month’s issue.
