Sophomore Sean Earl recently took over as Secretary of Auxiliaries for Missouri Students Association, and he already has some plans in the works for his upcoming semester.
An MSA Family Reunion, rebranding effort for auxiliaries and an auxiliary fair top Earl’s list of goals. He said the MSA Family Reunion would be a time for MSA members to reconnect with one another.
“Also, I will be focusing on a branding effort for all of the auxiliaries to inform the students that all of our services are either solely or jointly funded by the students and that they are for every student at Mizzou,” Earl said in an email. “I will also be planning an auxiliary fair to promote the auxiliaries directly to students and allow students to understand what each service can provide for them.”
Junior Chris Hanner’s recent resignation paved the way for Earl, who applied for the job last fall. Hanner said he decided to resign to devote more time to his major, International Business. He has plans to join organizations in the Trulaske College of Business. However, he will still attend senate meetings and Think Tank sessions.
Hanner said it is the Secretary of Auxiliaries’ job to ensure that the auxiliaries’ opinions are heard and to advocate for them, especially when MSA is drafting the budget. MSA has 11 auxiliaries, which range from STRIPES to Tiger Line, and funds these programs through the student fee.
Earl said that he has already had a hand in some of the duties he will have in the future, such as working with the auxiliaries on funding and communicating throughout the MSA.
As secretary, Earl will serve as an adviser for auxiliaries and meet with them several times a month. He will also be a liaison between the auxiliaries, the executive cabinet, and the legislature and judicial branches.
Earl was appointed as secretary by both MSA President Payton Head and Vice President Brenda Smith-Lezama.
Earl said he has served in a variety of positions with MSA, serving as a member of the Budget Committee and the Operations Committee. He also spent a lot of time prior to this year working with Hanner and the 11 auxiliaries. His experience in different fields of MSA this year influenced Smith-Lezama’s personal preference for Earl’s appointment as the Secretary of Auxiliaries.
“From the time I met Sean Earl as a first semester freshman, I knew he had a lot of potential,” Smith-Lezama said in an email. “During his original interview for Secretary of Auxiliaries, he really impressed President Payton Head and me. We gave a lot of thought to putting him on our cabinet, but we ultimately decided that he needed some time to grow and gain a deeper understanding of MSA. Over the past year he has been very involved in all the right areas, and I feel confident that he has the necessary skills to do this job very well.”
Hanner too worked on the budget committee, a position that helped Hanner in his job as Secretary.
“His experience as Budget Chairman allowed him to understand the necessary allocations while his love for the auxiliaries allowed him to fight for what was in their best interest,” Smith-Lezama said.
After consulting with Hanner, Head and Smith-Lezama made the decision to hire Earl for the position.
“I advised them on the qualities needed to hire the best Secretary possible, and I trust their judgement,” Hanner said in an email. “I wish Mr. Earl a fantastic semester in his new position. My best advice is to cherish the relationships you make with each auxiliary, and nurture them. If he can do that, he will have a fantastic semester as Secretary.”
Earl said he has high hopes for his upcoming semester.
“I have very big shoes to fill not only from (Hanner) but also his predecessor, Sandy Patel, who actually served on two administrations as Secretary of Auxiliaries. The position of Secretary of Auxiliaries (has) a lot of history behind it and I want to make sure I can fill the shoes left by everyone before me and set the bar even higher with the work that I’m going to do.”