Portfolio categories: <span>ACU</span>

KJ4SGA Campaign

In my junior year at Abilene Christian University, I recognized a growing need for strong leadership amid significant university expansion and a shifting student demographic. Believing I could make a positive impact, I decided to run for Student Body President. Inspired by past leaders, I was committed to addressing both large and small issues within the Student Government Association (SGA). I partnered with Rachel Jones, an exceptionally talented student leader who shared my vision for uniting the student body.

• Unite the Student Body: Create a deliberate, exciting, and substantive campaign that brings together students from all classifications.
• Effective Communication: Clearly convey our campaign vision to the student body and engage students from diverse backgrounds to support and participate in the campaign.
• Secure the Presidency: Win the Student Body President position at Abilene Christian University.
• Assemble a Dedicated Team: Recruit a driven team of individuals to serve as cabinet members and assist in executing our campaign platform.
• Fulfill Campaign Promises: Execute all goals and promises made during the campaign to the best of our ability.

Turning vision into action, I assembled a committed campaign team. My first priority was finding a competent and passionate running mate, which led me to collaborate with Rachel Jones for the Vice President role. We developed a campaign website, kj4sga.com, to communicate our vision and launched multiple social media accounts to promote our message. Engaging with students both online and in person, we gathered insights into the issues they cared about most.

Despite facing the incumbent Vice President and having less experience in SGA, our campaign gained significant momentum. We received endorsements from peers and the campus newspaper, The Optimist. Advancing to a runoff election, we continued our efforts, overcoming obstacles—including a misinformation campaign—to ultimately secure the presidency.

• Successful Campaign Execution: Ran a compelling campaign that resonated with a wide range of students, leading to electoral victory.
• Effective Team Building: Assembled an Executive Cabinet to help achieve SGA’s goals and initiatives.
• Fulfilled Promises: Delivered on nearly all campaign promises through hard work and collaborative efforts.
• Advocacy: Ensured student voices were heard on controversial issues, including university policies affecting same-sex relationships.
• Organizational Improvements:
  • Constitutional Overhaul: Rewrote the SGA constitution and bylaws, hosting a constitutional convention for significant amendments.
  • SGA Week: Launched a major marketing initiative to boost student interest and involvement in SGA and promote congress elections.
  • Judicial Branch Addition: Established a judicial branch to oversee legislation and student disciplinary matters.
  • Budget Allocation Tool: Developed an automated spreadsheet to fairly calculate funding for student organizations.
  • Congressional Seats Filled: Nearly all congressional seats were filled—a first in over four years.
• Campus Enhancements:
  • Bird Scooters Partnership: Introduced Bird Scooters to campus, the company’s first university partnership, generating external revenue for SGA.
  • Accessibility Improvements: Upgraded doors in high-traffic areas to enhance accessibility and efficiency.
• Community Building:
  • “LitMas” Tradition: Initiated a new campus event uniting students before the holiday break.
  • March Madness Watch Party: Celebrated the men’s and women’s basketball teams’ NCAA tournament appearances with a campus-wide event.
  • Collaboration with Campus Organizations: Partnered with the Campus Activities Board and New Student Programs to host events that brought together diverse student groups.
  • “Join Week” Program: Encouraged students to get involved with campus organizations through a new initiative at the start of the fall semester.
• Athletics Support:
  • Tailgating and Contests: Supported social clubs in participating in athletic events.
  • Scholarships and Prizes: Distributed $3,000 in scholarships and other incentives to boost attendance at on-campus sporting events.
  • Discounted Game Tickets: Provided 200 discounted tickets to the football season opener against Baylor University.

Quote from The Optimist editorial board:

We applauded their unity as a team and believe they lived up to expectations this year, and exceeded what their platform a year ago had to offer.

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ACU SGA Fall Report

As Student Body President at Abilene Christian University, I guided the Student Government Association (SGA) in releasing its first-ever Fall Semester Report. This groundbreaking document outlined the accomplishments of the Executive Cabinet during the Fall semester and set a vision for the upcoming Spring semester. The report was distributed to the university’s Senior Leadership Team (SLT) and presented to University President Dr. Phil Schubert.

• Inform Stakeholders: Update faculty and students on SGA’s progress throughout the semester.
• Set Future Expectations: Establish clear goals and expectations for the upcoming semester.
• Highlight Achievements: Showcase the accomplishments of the Student Congress and provide an overview of pending legislation.

 

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Wildcat Week Concert

During my time at Abilene Christian University (ACU), I was selected as a Student Director for Wildcat Week—a seven-day orientation program designed to create community and promote school spirit among first-year students. Each Student Director is solely responsible for developing, organizing, planning, and executing a series of events. I was entrusted with one of the program’s most significant responsibilities: orchestrating the grand finale concert.

• Select a Relevant Artist: Choose a headlining artist who would appeal to a wide demographic of attendees, including first-year students, current students, and alumni.
• Create a Festival Atmosphere: Develop a “festival-style” environment to foster community engagement and keep attendees entertained throughout the event.
• Unite the Campus Community: Bring together current students and alumni to celebrate and welcome the incoming freshman class.

I was directly responsible for every facet of the concert, including:

• Artist and Venue Selection: Collaborated with university leadership to choose a suitable artist and venue that aligned with our objectives and budget.
• Vendor Coordination: Managed relationships with vendors for staging, audio/visual equipment, and other event necessities.
• Budgeting and Fundraising: Developed and managed the event budget, ensuring cost-effectiveness while delivering a high-quality experience.
• Marketing and Branding: Worked with ACU’s Creative Services division to develop a marketing plan and promotional materials.
• Event Execution: Oversaw all logistical aspects leading up to and during the event to ensure a seamless experience.

To elevate the event beyond a traditional concert, I drew inspiration from the renowned Austin City Limits Music Festival, branding our event as “Abilene City Limits.” We secured Jesse McCartney, a well-known artist and personal inspiration, as the headliner. To engage current students and alumni, I leveraged my leadership position on the Campus Activities Board (The Cabinet), which plans free events for students throughout the academic year.

Challenges

• Venue Crisis: Two days before the event, a pipe burst at our planned outdoor venue, rendering it unusable.
• Time Constraints: The last-minute venue change required rapid coordination and problem-solving under extreme time pressure.
• Logistical Complexity: Coordinating between multiple vendors, university departments, and the artist’s team to ensure all requirements were met.

Solutions and Achievements

• Emergency Venue Relocation: Anticipating potential issues, I had previously identified a backup venue and developed a contingency plan. Within 24 hours of the crisis, I coordinated with all parties to relocate the event seamlessly.
• Effective Communication: Maintained clear and prompt communication with vendors, university officials, the artist’s management, and my team to ensure everyone was aligned despite the sudden changes.
• Enhanced Event Experience:
  • Social Media Engagement: Organized a creative artist reveal on social media, dropping hints throughout the day leading up to a live announcement on Twitter and Instagram.
  • VIP Meet and Greet: Arranged an exclusive opportunity for students to meet Jesse McCartney, increasing excitement and engagement.
  • Professional A/V Production: Collaborated with 83 Entertainment, a local production company, to deliver high-quality audio/visual setups, including an IMAG package, lighting, and staging per the artist’s requirements.

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March Madness – Watch Party

For the first time in school history, both the Men’s and Women’s basketball teams at Abilene Christian University (ACU) qualified for the NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament, known as “The Big Dance.” Recognizing this historic achievement, I took the initiative to host one of the largest watch parties in the university’s history. Just three years after ACU transitioned to Division I, this event marked a new era for ACU Athletics and was designed to celebrate this milestone accordingly. The watch party united faculty, staff, students, and alumni from across the nation and recorded one of the highest basketball-specific attendances in university history.

• Celebrate Athletic Achievement: Create an exciting atmosphere that honors the success of the ACU Men’s and Women’s basketball teams.
• Rapid Coordination: Collaborate with internal and external teams to organize a large-scale event in less than one week.
• Promote School Spirit and Awareness: Enhance school spirit while increasing awareness of ACU Athletics’ new Division I status.
• Secure Funding: Obtain donations from alumni, athletic sponsors, and other avenues to finance the event.

With less than a week to plan, I worked tirelessly to coordinate all aspects of this massive event:

• Event Planning and Coordination: Collaborated with athletics, marketing, and facilities staff to develop a comprehensive execution plan.
• Vendor Management: Engaged internal and external vendors for services such as audio-visual equipment, merchandise, and catering.
• High-Profile Engagements: Invited prominent speakers, including the city mayor and the university president, to enhance the event’s significance.
• Marketing and Promotion:
  • Organized a social media giveaway to send two lucky students to attend the game in person in Florida, boosting engagement and increasing followers on the university’s Instagram account (@acuedu).
  • Coordinated with ACU’s Creative Services to develop promotional materials and a marketing campaign.
• Logistics Management:
  • Arranged for limited-edition T-shirts to be rush printed and distributed to the first 500 attendees to encourage turnout.
  • Oversaw the projection of the game on a massive 40-foot screen, incorporating high-energy segments during commercial breaks.
• Live Streaming: Partnered with ACUTV to live-stream the event on Facebook, allowing distant alumni and supporters to participate virtually.

Challenges

• Time Constraints: Orchestrated a large-scale event with less than a week for planning and execution.
• Resource Mobilization: Secured necessary funding, merchandise, and technical equipment on an accelerated timeline.
• Cross-Departmental Coordination: Ensured seamless collaboration among various university departments and external partners under tight deadlines.

Solutions and Achievements

• Efficient Planning: Prioritized tasks and utilized effective communication to coordinate with all stakeholders swiftly.
• Successful Fundraising: Obtained donations from alumni donors and athletic sponsors, fully funding the event without exceeding the budget.
• Record Attendance: Achieved one of the largest basketball-related event attendances in university history, with over 3,000 participants.
• Enhanced Engagement: Increased social media following and engagement through strategic promotions and live-streaming efforts.
• Strengthened Community: Unified students, faculty, staff, and alumni in a shared celebration, boosting school spirit and pride in ACU Athletics.

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ACU Paint Fest

ACU Paint Fest was an event held by The Cabinet (Campus Activities Board) a campus-sponsored, student leadership group with a mission to increase student involvement and retention through free university-sponsored events. Ty joined The Cabinet during its first, post-pilot launch year. This presented unique challenges as there were not many established event ideas, and creativity among team members was of the utmost importance. Of the 8 Cabinet staff members, each was responsible for approximately two campus events. Ty chose to take on the largest event of the Spring 2018 semester dubbed “ACU Paint Fest”.

• Create a fun and exciting event that will lead to record breaking attendance for a unviersity sponsered function.
• Promote brand awareness and form brand identity for The Cabinet in its first debut year as a campus organization.
• Increase student involvement and retenition.

The event was a tremendous success on many fronts. Over 900 students attended the event, exceeding the target attendance of 500. The event helped The Cabinet gain a significant following among the student body and helped build the brand of the organization. Although hard to measure from a single event, student engagement and retention was up at the end of the semester as reported by the Office of Student Life. Feedback from students was extremely positive and many asked for the event to return to campus again. Among the things that needed improvement was the smell of the paint and the cleanup procedures.

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Bird + ACU

After being elected President of the Student Body at Abilene Christian University, Ty spent the summer working on a strategy for the upcoming academic year. One of the projects Ty was working on during this time was a partnership with Bird Scooters. The project was a phased introduction of Bird Scotters to ACU’s campus.

• Increase sustainable transportation options on campus.
• Provide affordable transportation options for international students who may not have a vehicle.
• Reduce carbon emissions.
• Allevivate strain on on-campus parking lots.
• Create an external revenue source for the Student Governemt Associaition

ACU was the first university to sign an official partnership with Bird scooters. Ty oversaw project approval from upper administration within the university, including The Office of Student Life, The Office of The President, Facilities Management, and University Operations.

The project started off a massive success. Within just 4 months, Bird + ACU had eliminated over 15,270 pounds of CO2, sent riders 17,144 miles across
Abilene, and prevented countless tradies in classes. It also offered flexibility to international students and students living in near-by off-campus housing. The partnership generated close to $10,000 of revenue for SGA, which was used to help fund student organizations and campus activities. Unfortunately, after a rough winter season, Bird decided to put a hold on operations and ultimately decided not to return to Abilene without clear reasoning. The best guess for the retreat was the lackluster performance tied to the small population of the Abilene community and the harsh winter conditions that lasted many months.

Students absolutely loved Bird while it was on campus and it helped generate the first-ever external revenue source for ACU’s Student Government Association. At the time of writing, a new group of students tied to an on-campus entrepreneurship group has initiated another partnership with Bird, and will now deploy a new fleet of scooters on campus, owned by the new venture.

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