Appalachian State University’s Student Government Association was honored with four awards given by the UNC Association of Student Governments this past Saturday.

The awards included Delegation of the Year, Delegate of the Year given to President Dylan Russell, Best SGA/Most Innovative Initiative for efforts involving voting rights, and the Sanders Student Advocate Award given to Chancellor Kenneth Peacock and his wife Rosanne Peacock.

The Appalachian Delegation is composed of Russell, along with Michael Page, Sarah Dickson, Adam Ezell and David Gordon.

Russell said he feels blessed to have received four awards, because Appalachian’s SGA is one of 17 in the UNC system.

“For Appalachian to receive four of the six awards is a great deal and honor,” Russell said. “Appalachian received these awards for our tireless commitment to not just the students of Appalachian State University, but the entire UNC system. We were able to unite very distinct and separate institutions and advocate for all students.”

SGA’s achievements for the 2013-14 academic year include rallying UNC system schools to take a stance against guns on campus – headed by Russell – creating policy for the UNC Board of Governors for a uniform set of procedures for campus identification cards so that they may be counted as legal voter identification, and receiving a total of more than $20,950 in grants for campus initiatives.

The grant money awarded was not only the highest ever awarded to an institution in ASG’s 42-year history, but it also doubled SGA’s annual operating budget.

Story: Laney Ruckstuhl, Assistant News Editor