Written By | Rick Osborne
Rick Osborne- 4th year, graduating in May 2019 St. Cloud State University
Major- Political Science Minor- Business Management & Communication Studies
This past year I had the wonderful opportunity to serve as the Campus Organizing Coordinator for St. Cloud. Being involved with Students United has been an amazing experience and I will always cherish the memories and opportunities from this past year. Throughout my college journey and being involved with Student Government, I had been to a few Students United Delegates Conferences and it was so cool to have the honor to work with other universities on issues that are affecting our campuses and strive to help find solutions. Those conferences inspired my interest with Students United and encouraged me to become more involved with the organization.
The favorite part of the position I think was the advocacy efforts that I participated in. Having participated in the Advocacy Day and the Federal Advocacy Trip, I got firsthand experience advocating and encouraging our political leaders to support higher education and our Students United agenda’s. During both of the advocacy outreach events we had wonderful conversations with congressional leaders and the feedback we received from them was very positive. Throughout both of these events I learned practical skills of advocacy and more knowledge of higher education issues affecting students.
This position taught me so much over the course of year, skills that will help me in future endeavors after college and careers. The main skills that I learned and developed this year was decision-making and teamwork. As coordinator I had to help assist the committee in making decisions for the events and objectives we were focusing on a weekly basis. Teamwork was another huge skill that I developed this year because I had to effectively lead and work with the committee to achieve our organizational objectives and continue to be the voice of students as a team. I also worked with the other coordinators and partnered with the Board of Directors/Officer Team. If it wasn’t for working as a team, we wouldn’t be able to accomplish what we did. I was very proud of the work our campus committee did at SCSU, but also seeing the great working happening around Minnesota!
I would highly recommend applying for the position as coordinator for many reasons. The skills and experiences you will gain from this opportunity will be very beneficial for career and skill development. As a coordinator your very engaged on your campus, but also get to collaborate and work with the other universities across the state. Another reason is your passion for serving others. I have a passion for service and that’s what lead me to get involved with Students United. Advocating to the Minnesota State system and legislators in our state and federal level is truly amazing. Lastly, the friends and people you meet through this opportunity is so rewarding. I’m so fortunate to have worked with incredible students from all over the state from campus committee members, coordinators, board of directors, officers and staff who all share the same vision for students and making the college experience a great place for everyone to learn and grow. You will be amazed at the experience and opportunities you’ll have through a position with Students United!