SG executive alliance outlines plans for semester in sit-down interview

The Texan sat down with Student Government President Kiera Dixon and Vice President Jaden Watt on Thursday to discuss their plans for the new semester and how they hope to fulfill their campaign promises. These plans include Welcome Week events, collaborations across campus and improving resources for students. 

Dixon and Watt were sworn in to their respective positions on April 7, kickstarting their year-long term. The pair’s campaign focused on affordability and transparency, and they are working to see these pillars executed through various events and policies rolling out in the coming weeks. 

Upcoming Events

As students return to campus, the University will host official Longhorn Welcome activities, including events within each college, food trucks, giveaways and craft nights. A complete list of Longhorn Welcome events can be found on UT’s website. 

SG will host the “Longhorn Launchpad,” a club and organization fair where students can connect with organizations founded in the last two years, on Sept. 9 in the WCP Ballroom. After new-student orientation was cut from three days to two this year, Dixon said it is even more important for students to learn about ways to get involved on campus. 

“It puts an increased importance on these first weeks and organizations having the space to table and students being able to come to that event,” Dixon said. “We really want to create a space to uplift student orgs.” 

First-Year Representative Elections

Dixon and Watt hope to increase student awareness with SG by placing a larger emphasis on the First-Year Representative Elections, which will be held on Sept. 23. 

“The biggest push with our first-year elections is to increase turnout and to increase overall awareness,” Watt said. “It’s part of our overall push to combat apathy with student government.” 

Two representatives will be elected by first-year students to advocate for them in university-related matters. Candidate filing closes on 9 a.m. Sept. 14, and a mandatory seminar will be held that evening. 

Policies and Initiatives

The executive alliance plans to follow through on their campaign promises this semester by increasing financial transparency and fighting food insecurity. Dixon said all SG will now publish budget information on their website within 48 hours of it being finalized so students can know how their representatives are spending money. 

In October, SG will hold the fourth annual Red River Rivalry Food Fight, a competition with the University of Oklahoma to gather the most food donations as a way to harness the competitive spirit to help the community. Dixon also said SG is working on increasing access to temporary meal cards and Dine-in Dollar donations.

“We’re looking forward to giving some more options for students that are facing food insecurity and allowing them to access the dining halls as well,” Dixon said. 

After years of SG advocacy, the University announced plans to implement digital student IDs at the end of last year. Watt said they are still working on updating infrastructure, but the IDs should launch by the fall semester of 2027. Virtual IDs will be available on a trial basis for some students this year and will grant access to high-traffic buildings such as the Perry-Castañeda Library and Gregory Gymnasium to test the software. 

“We’ve increased our collaboration with a variety of different university departments,” Watt said. “As we start to increase our collaborations with more university partners, we hope to also increase the legitimacy of student government.”

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