The OU Undergraduate Student Congress elected its new chair during its Tuesday meeting after its former chair stepped down.
Parliamentarian Abby Halsey-Kraus was elected as chair after Congress Chair Lacey Lewis announced she was stepping down in the Jan. 24 meeting following her acceptance of a new job which leaves her unable to continue her position in the Student Government Association.
Lewis said leaving the body was one of the hardest decisions she has ever made, but she is grateful for how the past four years have shaped her. She said she gives credit to the people who have guided her and have been her support system, and only hopes to leave the same kind of impression.
“If I could leave you with just a few parting words of advice, it would be to really cultivate the relationships and friendships with those around you,” Lewis said. “The friends I have been with in this organization will forever stick with me.”
The University Policy committee Chair Annie Mullins nominated Halsey-Kraus for chair because, in her current role, Halsey-Kraus is the “most knowledgeable” of the inner workings of Congress, Mullins said.
“Abby works hard, juggles so many things, but she always has them scheduled out, and she inspires me to do better,” Mullins said. “The main thing is she has the gratitude, the patience and the ability to work with all of us and be versatile. She connects with us, and I truly think she’s the best fit for this body.”
Halsey-Kraus said she was extremely unsure of herself when she took on her role of chair of the Congressional Administration committee in December 2021. She said reworking election guidelines and updating SGA’s election system presented new challenges she never thought she would face.
However, she said she overcame those obstacles with the help and support of others in the body and hoped to continue this practice of a collective effort if elected as chair.
“These challenges took countless hours of hard work, sweat and tears — lots and lots of tears — but, most importantly, I moved these issues forward with the help of members of this body and SGA leaders,” Halsey-Kraus said. “We have an opportunity to take this body to new heights, … and I need your help to do it. We must move forward together.”
Rep. Nathanael Reese nominated Vice Chair Bailey Trautman. He said he believes she has great character, and an excellent work ethic and dedication to the body.
“I know her very personally, and she devotes herself to Congress, both in her public life, like here in the meetings, but also in (her) private life,” Reese said. “She’s the best candidate because … she’s been in the administration for the longest out of the three candidates, so there are less moving parts.”
Trautman spoke on her platform SERVE, which stood for support, campus engagement, registered student organization representatives, versatility and excel.
She said she wants Congress to be a place for members to rely on one another, to proactively interact with other students and organizations and to push people to be the best versions of themselves.
Trautman said she believes she would be the perfect candidate because of all the experiences and positions she has held in congress, including associate, representative and chair of the Campus Outreach, Safety and Concerns committee. She also said, given her current position as vice chair, a transition into being chair would arguably be the smoothest of the three candidates.
“This is a rare situation where the chair is stepping down in the middle of her term,” Trautman said. “I feel like I’m the candidate with the lowest learning curve because I’ve shadowed Lacey and have time in my schedule for plenty of office hours, which will hopefully give me a seamless transition.”
Rep. Michael Reynolds nominated fellow Rep. Shrey Kathuria because he said he fully believes in his platform, WIN, which stands for “welcoming community, igniting change and notifying you.”
Kathuria said he wants to create a safe space for all members of the body and an inclusive space for racial minorities and members of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community. He also said he wants to be as transparent as possible with Congress members and his constituents.
“I want to be somebody who inspires others,” Kathuria said. “Someone who brings growth. I also want to make sure this place is safe for anybody to improve themselves and their views.”
Halsey-Kraus received 18 votes and was named the new chair of Congress. She will finish out the remainder of Lewis’ term, ending in April. Her term began immediately and she headed the rest of the meeting.
Congress also saw and unanimously passed AB-109-02, an auxiliary bill that allocated funds to 14 different student organizations. The bill will be seen by the Graduate Student Senate for further consideration.
This story was edited by Alexia Aston, Karoline Leonard and Jazz Wolfe. Alexandra Powell-Lorentzatos and Nikkie Aisha copy edited this story.
