About one month ago, the Student Government opened the doors for two new members as Bobby Lannan and Gavin Bennett, freshmen, were both elected as the representatives of the freshman class. A position that has been left unfilled until now, this position completes the SGA, ensuring that all classes have a voice within the SGA. Lannan and Bennett join Jack Teuschl, senior, Michael Williams, junior, Richie Pineda, junior, Andrew Hoffman, sophomore, and Anderson Harlor, sophomore, as the other class representatives on the SGA.
The freshmen now have a unique position within the SGA as they come to Gonzaga with a different perspective from all of its other members.
“It’s the only class on Eye Street looking at Gonzaga for what it is. Most of them have no prior impressions of it because it’s their first year, so we can get an honest look at what we’re doing,” SGA President Benjamin Garland said.
Since the freshmen were new to the school and maybe naive to the Eagle way of life, their elections were held at a separate time from the traditional all-school elections.
“We waited until now because we wanted to do them (the elections) after the freshmen retreat. We wanted the class to have more experience together and really get to know one another before they decided to vote or run,” President Garland said.
Bobby Lannan, the first freshman class representative, comes to Gonzaga from Potomac, Md. Prior to his time at Gonzaga, he attended Our Lady Mercy Middle School in Potomac. Lannan chose Gonzaga over all other high schools due to the camaraderie and excellence that Gonzaga gives the opportunity for.
“I really like the camaraderie of the students here [Gonzaga] and brotherhood of the guys, and also the academic and athletic excellence that it presents,” Lannan said. “There’s a lot of great opportunities here as well just to get to know people and to get involved in many different ways.”
At Gonzaga, Lannan plays football and is a member of the chess club. Oftentimes, he is playing fellow students in chess during his free period outside the makerspace of the first floor of Cantwell and Reusch.
During his campaign, Lannan ran off the slogan “A vote for Bobby is a vote for better Gonzaga.” He relied heavily on his Instagram account and posters which he hung throughout the school. Another significant part of his campaign was his presence on campus. Lannan would spend his time during and after school to interact with fellow freshmen and film videos for his Instagram account as a way of getting his name and ideas out into the community. Among those ideas, Lannan connected his love of chess with the growing game at Gonzaga. Lannan talked about bringing a lunch chess league to Gonzaga where students could compete and come together during the time outside of class.
So far during his time with the SGA, Lannan has enjoyed all the different conversations that go on within every meeting.
“I think they’re really insightful, and I get to know a lot about situations in our school. I’m excited about the events coming up like the ping pong tournament and the chess tournament and other events in the works,” Lannan said.
Lannan made sure to thank those who made it possible and addressed the freshman directly.
“Thank you for supporting and electing me, and I am looking forward to making it a great rest of the year for you guys,” Lannan said.
Gavin Bennett, the second freshman representative, like Lannan, has a healthy commute every morning. Bennett comes to Gonzaga from Ashburn, Va., where he lives with his mom and dad as an only child. Typically, Bennett leaves his house for school around 6:50 a.m.before he embarks on his 40-minute commute. Now at Gonzaga, Bennett plays football and is in the Poets and Writers club as well as in Onyx. However, prior to his time on Eye Street, he attended Farmwell Station Middle School in Ashburn, Va. Unfortunately, there he did not feel like he was pushed academically.
“I chose Gonzaga because I thought it was a really good opportunity for me because of academics and sports. In public school, I wasn’t pushed enough academically and wasn’t living up to my full potential. I came to Gonzaga so I could reach my full potential,” Bennett said.
For his campaign, Bennett took a unique approach which some would not expect.
“I wanted to make it a sort of fun looking campaign with pictures that I thought of as a joke. I knew my audience pretty well and thought it would gravitate more people to my page,” Bennett said. “I also tried to make my posts unique and a little bit different than my competitors.”
This different way of campaigning is what eventually allowed Bennett to stand out, and win over the vote of his fellow freshman classmates.
So far during his time as a freshman representative, Bennett has loved every part of it.
“I like how everyone can share and voice ideas and how everyone works together to make stuff happen for our school,” Bennett said. “I also get to appreciate more of, and be a part of the behind the scenes work that is being done for the student body.”
Like Lannan, Bennett wanted to address his fellow classmates and reassure them of their vote for him as their representative.
“I’d like to say that I’m excited to help make our freshman year a great year, and I’m glad to be a part of it,” Bennett said.
Both Lannan and Bennett will serve as freshman representatives for the rest of the 2022-23 school year before having to re-run during their sophomore year if they wish to be the sophomore representatives.
Carol Corgan • Apr 21, 2023 at 10:58 am
Nice work, Drew!