Editor’s note: The responses in this report have been lightly edited for clarity and brevity.
DeKALB – Ethan Pesavento, a junior operations, management and information systems major, was elected as the Student Government Association treasurer for the 2024-2025 academic year. Pesavento spoke to the Northern Star about himself and what he hopes to accomplish as SGA treasurer.
Question: Tell me a little bit about yourself and what you like to do in your free time?
Answer: I’m currently a junior. My major is OMIS – operation, management and information systems. So I’m in the College of Business. I aim to complete my master’s after I complete my undergraduate. I want to do my master’s in data analytics. So that’s pretty exciting. I’m from Sugar Grove, Illinois, which is a town about 25 minutes away from NIU. I attended Kaneland High School, which is in Maple Park, so that’s about 20 minutes away from Northern and then I have one older brother.
I love to exercise whenever I have free time. And also kind of just spending time with friends, just relaxing if I can, just sit in my room watching movies, shows, anything like that.
Q: Have you been part of SGA before, and if so what role did you have prior to being elected treasurer?
A: I have not been a part of SGA before, so I was never a part of SGA before this year, but I guess I’ll give a little bit of insight. So I was the treasurer for my fraternity, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, and I had known what student government was for a couple of years, and I always had an interest in it. So I guess I just wanted to, you know, kind of shoot my shot with it — try to run and just to see how I can help better campus in that sense and improve the process of funding for students.
Q: What does SGA mean to you?
A: I think that the main thing SGA means to me is the voice of the students to faculty, administration, that kind of sense. I think it’s a platform for student leadership, and it’s where students can, I guess, directly influence campus policies, or maybe even improve student life. And I think that SGA provides great leadership opportunities and skills that can be carried out just by being a part of SGA, you can carry that into the real world, which is really nice, but I think it’s also great to create some big and meaningful changes on campus.
Q: What do you want to accomplish as SGA treasurer this year?
A: The first thing I’d like to accomplish as SGA treasurer is I want to make the process of funding better understood by the student body as well as just more outreach as well. I also want to make the process for funding better understood. So I’ve already been working on modifying forms to change verbiage to help apply for funding in whatever specific scenario you may need it. So there’s that. And then I’d also say that another big thing is just the outreach of SGA as well. I feel as though SGA is very underrepresented. I feel like a lot of people do not know what it is, and then for the people who do know what SGA is, they’re like, ‘oh, yeah that’s cool.’ Or they don’t really know or understand what we do. So I guess one of the main things is I just want more involvement. I want students to be excited and be like, ‘oh yeah. That’s something that I could do, and that’s something that I could benefit from, and help me grow as an individual.
Q: What’s your favorite part about NIU?
A: My favorite thing about NIU is honestly, I say genuinely, the campus. I actually love NIU’s campus. I’m definitely more of a guy who’s geared towards, like, a smaller campus, and everything closer together. And I wouldn’t even consider NIU that small compared to others. But I like the campus, I like the life. I like how there’s so many different types of students from so many different backgrounds. I like how there’s local, but then there’s also students who didn’t even attend school in this country. And then the various professors that teach courses.
Q: What would you like students to know about you?
A: The main thing I would like students to know is how to reach me. I do have office hours in the (Holmes) Student Center, if anybody has any questions about getting their organization funded. I am in there Monday, Wednesday, Friday, as well as reaching out to me through my email if they have any questions about how to get their organizations funded.
