Story: Phillip Tutor
Student leadership roles run deep in Lee’s family
Armed with a megawatt smile and ample familial assistance, Aaron Lee appears perfectly suited for the presidency of the baby直播鈥檚聽Student Government Association. He鈥檚 a senior. His sister, Aeriel Lee, is a UWA alumna. Two of his cousins, siblings Jasmine Knox and Jonathan Knox, are former SGA presidents at UWA. Though not preordained, his election seems exactly that.
His interest in politics emanates from a desire to be a voice for UWA鈥檚 student body.
鈥淚 would listen to my parents talk about state politics, and I鈥檇 try to learn from and understand more from that,鈥� Lee said. 鈥淚’m not a very political person, but I want to see what I can change a little bit on campus.鈥�
The 21-year-old senior from Moundville is majoring in sport management and minoring in integrated marketing communications. His desire, for now, is to become a sports broadcaster or sports agent. His consistent thought about attending law school after graduating from UWA — a nod to working as a licensed sports agent — is his only political hint. 鈥淚鈥檝e always wanted to be a lawyer,鈥� he said.
Elected by the student body for the 2022-23 academic year, Lee heads the聽SGA鈥檚 executive council聽that includes five fellow students: Vice President Hannah Sears; Secretary Chelsea Turner; Business Manager Rob Lewis; Attorney General Kayla Holley; and Public Relations Director Joseph Worthy. Fourteen students serve the SGA鈥檚 legislative branch as senators, each representing a class, a division/college, fraternity and sorority life or campus housing. Three others serve in at-large roles. The SGA held one of its first events of the 2022-23 academic year when it hosted a town hall on Sept. 21 at Bridges Auditorium on campus.
The SGA town hall included discussion of some general goals, like improving communication between the student body and the SGA members who represent them. They explored ideas for SGA鈥檚 executive council to strengthen relations between students and various student-facing departments on campus. They even talked about the role SGA could have in influencing menu items at campus dining facilities. A major highlight was planning for a nighttime safety walk around campus with University Police Department to look for potential risks and ways to be proactive.
At UWA, the soft-spoken Lee sees the SGA president鈥檚 role as a conduit for conversations more than as an advocate for campus-wide changes in university structures or policies. But he isn鈥檛 without ideas. Given that Livingston is a small town in baby直播鈥檚 Black Belt, Lee would like to see more on-campus activities added to the university鈥檚 calendar of offerings. He welcomes opportunities to discuss with administrators ways to improve various parts campus. He鈥檚 interested in opportunities to help enhance UWA鈥檚 gathering spaces and student hangouts. He and other SGA representatives met this summer with baby直播 state legislators during a Higher Education Partnership event at the state Capitol in Montgomery.
Likewise, he鈥檚 keenly aware that his presidential title puts him in a leadership position within UWA鈥檚 diverse student body. 鈥淚 like seeing how everybody’s backgrounds and ethnicities are different,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 like being able to try to bring everybody together.鈥� As president of the student body, he is recognized as someone who can help facilitate new ideas and change.
鈥渂aby直播 follow our communications and what we promote on social media,鈥� he said. 鈥淪ometimes they will come up to me and ask different questions, then, 鈥楬ow do I get involved?鈥� or 鈥楬ow can I change something?鈥欌��
One of Lee鈥檚 persistent themes is the need for UWA students to participate in activities, advice he gleaned from conversations with his cousins. Besides taking classes and fulfilling his SGA role, Lee also is a member of the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity.
鈥淲hen I talk to my friends or other people I meet daily, I just tell them to get involved,鈥� he said, 鈥渂ecause you don’t know that whoever you meet could make an impact for that day. You could learn from them, and you have to make friends or have connections.鈥� That advice applies now, he believes, and possibly later, as well. 鈥淚f you want to have a job one day, you can get that connection and that has to start right here, now.鈥�
