At the close of last semester, the student body elected a new president to the Undergraduate Student Government.

Elected May 20, Adrian Miller, a junior from Carbondale studying political science, has been preparing for his new role all summer. Miller said he hopes to serve the students of the university by collaborating with the dean of students, Illinois Board of Higher Education and other student organizations.

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Miller said he was excited about being elected for the upcoming year and already has some ideas he wants to implement.

“I get to have an effect on policy, events and programming,” Miller said. “One thing we are trying to do is finance reform over the next year.”

His team has been working hard since their election victory to make the best decisions with the resources given to them and they want to help make sure the resources are distributed, he said.

Miller has been involved in politics on campus since he arrived at SIU, serving as a senator for the College of Liberal Arts for two years. Currently, Miller is working with the administration of the former USG President Brittany Greathouse.

Oliver Keys, USG vice president, said Miller has been working with the previous administration to do something no one has done in a while; make sure the student voice is heard.

“Miller will work toward taking what was already in place and making it better,” Keys said.

Miller said he has also been working with the chancellor’s office and the dean of students, Dr. Katie Sermersheim, on the student code of conduct.

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Sermersheim said working closely with the USG helps her office stay informed about student issues. She said she likes to work with the student body and wants to keep the lines of communication open.

Earlier this year, Sermersheim recommended Miller to be a student representative for the Illinois Board of Higher Education.

On June 6. Miller was elected to the IBHE student advisory committee to represent Southern Illinois. He said he is trying to go above and beyond people’s expectations as student body president by serving through organizations such as the IBHE student advisory committee.

Miller said the experience will be useful to him as student body president and serving on the IBHE will allow him to vote on state issues before they become campus issues.

“I can take what’s going on here at SIU and relay it to the IBHE into real policy,” he said.

Former USG President Greathouse, a senior from Bolingbrook studying finance, said Miller’s goal was to become USG president and she thinks he will succeed.

“Adrian Miller is very focused,” she said. “He wants to work with student concerns.”

Greathouse said one of her biggest adversities as USG president was raising awareness about student advisory boards and search committees. She said raising awareness of these committees could help Miller reach his goals.

Students who serve on these committees help make important decisions across campus such as appointing positions and directing funding, Greathouse said.

Miller said he thinks solutions can best be found by a diverse group of people working together and agrees it can be accomplished by advisory boards, search committees and the USG.

“I’m the type of leader that believes in getting all the ideas on the table and then making a grand plan that fixes the issue,” he said. “So much of our university’s problems are that we focus on our differences and not our similarities.”