Gonzaga Study Body Association (GSBA) President, Taylor Kratochvil (’16), is passionate about creating spaces for students to tell their stories. And throughout his time in GSBA, he’s developed a keen ear for listening intentionally to each one. His empathetic approach empowers students to enact authentic, positive change on campus. We recently sat down with Taylor to hear about his hopes for Gonzaga during his time as President and all the memories he’s made throughout his career at GSBA.
Q: How would you describe GSBA’s priorities for this year?
Last year, when Student Body Vice President Maggie Douglas and I sat down and asked ourselves how we could improve as a community, our response was simple: We want students’ voices to be heard. Communication is at the root of everything. If someone has a concern, we want them to feel their voice is heard. It’s incredibly important. GSBA serves as a mediator between students and faculty. The administration truly, truly cares about how the students are feeling and their opinions on matters.
We also recognized transition everywhere. There’s the Hemmingson, the new changes in the library, the new core curriculum, the new performing arts center. We’re at a really special time here at GU. This time of transformation puts us in a really unique opportunity to shape what it looks like. I want to make sure that students are involved during this time.
Q: What are some more specific objectives you’re implementing this year to make those goals a reality?
Soon after the fall semester kicked off, we had the Logan neighborhood block party. For a long time, there’s been this dichotomy between the Logan neighborhood and the Gonzaga community. In reality, we’re really one community. So the Block Party was a huge success – a large number of Gonzaga students attended, an amazing number of permanent resident families showed up from all over the Logan neighborhood, and it was a great opportunity to put an actual face to “Logan neighborhood residents” and “Gonzaga students.”
Also during the fall, we started a monthly online newsletter and video, the State of the Zag, which highlights what GSBA and the administration are talking about together. Through our new Be Heard campaign, our senators and class officers are tabling in Hemmingson, collecting input on anew topic every week. For example, during the week featuring the Health Center, students can stop by and write any questions or concerns they have about the Health Center and we deliver them to that office. Because safety and security on campus is a big issue, we’re looking at bringing a security app to campus.
Healthy Campus 2020 is a national campaign that is tailored to our school’s needs. One objective in the campaign is going smoke free. We’re in a unique position right now to be able to qualify what that exactly that means: Does smoke-free mean we outlaw tobacco and E-cigs as well? Do we still provide smoking designated areas? I say, Let’s talk about this and see how it fits into our community. We’re not imposing anything. Let’s have a discussion.
Q: What have you learned through your time in GSBA?
I’ve really loved the opportunity to be a liaison between administration and students. I also just love sitting down and getting to talk to people on that personal level. I’ve really learned how diverse our student population is – all the gifts and talents – through conversation. I’ve learned that stopping to say “Hey, let’s go get a cup of coffee and talk” is just as valuable as trying to push through some big initiative. You learn so much about them and yourselves in that moment.
Q: What has been your favorite event or initiative with GSBA?
My sophomore year we began a Letters to Florence campaign. We have such a big student population there and being so far away from home over holidays like Thanksgiving and Easter is difficult. This campaign is a reminder that they’re still a part of this community. It helps students say “We want you to be here and we miss you, but enjoy your time abroad.” It’s actually expanded; we’re now sending letters to all those abroad.
Q: What do you hope to take from the experience of being Student Body President?
Being able to see people and experiences through a different light. Being able to sit down and talk and talk about things that matter. What I’ll really take away is being able to vicariously experience other people’s stories through conversations. I’d really like to see GSBA stay present. I hope that’s apparent. I hope it continues to grow in that and empower students by making their voice heard.
Megan O’Malley (’17)