App State’s 2026-27 student body president and vice president for the SGA candidates held a meet and greet with the student body March 18.
Students were invited to ask the candidates questions about their platforms and plans for their position if elected. Inside the Summit Trail Solarium, tables were set up with pins, flyers and other handouts for students. The candidates were behind them, eager to talk to fellow students.
The teams of candidates, Elizabeth Ford with running mate Yauri Hatcher and Jordan Cisneros with running mate Marquetta Bouldrick, are running on differing platforms.
Jordan Cisneros and Marquetta Bouldrick
Cisneros, a sophomore nursing major and Bouldrick, a sophomore risk-management and insurance major, are running on a platform of giving back to the community within SGA.
“One thing that I’ve definitely noticed is that we are not out in our community as much as we really can be. We have one road that we take care of every year, but that’s a contract,” Cisneros said. “I really want to transform SGA into that role where we’re giving back to the community because this community gives back to us so much for about nine months out of the year.”
Bouldrick said she was scared to volunteer and get herself out there when she was a freshman; she now volunteers at FARM Cafe and sees her peers volunteering as well.
“I’ve met some really wonderful people, like some nice people. So just seeing how the students come together, like FARM Cafe, to help feed the community, I think that’s very beautiful. And that just shows me we’re going down the right path,” Bouldrick said.
Two of the largest changes that Cisneros and Bouldrick are hoping to implement are an emergency committee within SGA for emergency service needs and a push for the school to notify students of schedule changes due to weather earlier than 6 a.m. on the day of.
Elizabeth Ford and Yauri Hatcher
Ford is a junior political science major and Hatcher is a sophomore international business major. They said they are running on a platform of uniting the student body and helping them connect with university administration.
Ford also said she would like to close the distance between transfer students and those who have attended App State all four years.
“I am a transfer student. This is my second year at App. I am also an RA at Mountain Laurel, the transfer student dorms,” Ford said. “So, I can definitely see how that community can be very closed off and really concerning from the people who are coming in.”
Being a resident assistant, Ford said she’s seen students going through the “five stages of grief” during the beginning of their time at App State. The last platform the team is running on is providing more resources and support for students participating in club sports.
“I was on the club cheer team last year, so it definitely hits home for me because we did amazing at our competitions and no one knew about it besides our followers on Instagram, which is great, but it’s, like, we’re representing App State,” Hatcher said. “It would be even better if we got that recognition from our university as a whole. And there’s so many other students and athletes who have that same story.”
The candidates have the slogan “Have a Seat at Our Table” because they said they want to make sure the voice of every student is heard and for them to know that their experience is important.
The candidates will participate in a debate Tuesday, March 24 at 7 p.m. in the Solarium, with Boone Mayor Dalton George serving as the moderator
Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly attributed quotes made by Ford to Hatcher. This has since been corrected.