There are currently three candidates slated to represent engineering students in the upcoming Student Government elections. Within the senate, there can be up to four representatives for the College of Engineering.

Anna Hackbarth, a senior majoring in electrical engineering, is currently seated as a College of Engineering senator and running for reelection.

Jessica Guerrero, a freshman majoring in software engineering, is currently running in the Student Government election for the first time.

Max Kueller is a senior majoring in software engineering and is also running for reelection.

Student Government is a student organization that exists to serve and represent all students according to the student organization database. Other student organizations can apply for funding through Student Government, which according to their website, has roughly $2.6 million in annual student fee revenue to distribute.

The Student Government elections will take place March 7-8. Ballots will be emailed to students’ Iowa State email addresses.

Why do you want to return to/join student government?

Anna Hackbarth

“Throughout my time at Iowa State, I’ve always tried to find roles that have allowed me to serve in the communities that I love. For example, I’ve been in the marching band here at Iowa State for the past four years, going into my fifth year, and have been in leadership for three years in that organization to find a way to give back to that community. I’ve also been the co-president of Engineers Week and have been able to plan all these events and give back to the college of engineering and my peers in similar majors as me. I think that’s what drew me to Student Government. I was ready to serve in a larger way, and what better way to serve than to serve the entire student body.”

Jessica Guerrero

“I was in Student Government all four years of high school, and then I did it in middle school as well. I want to join at Iowa State just to get more involved. Being a student, I feel like there are a lot of opportunities here, and because I just got done with my first semester, I feel like I have finally gotten into the groove of things and want to be involved in something big here.”

Max Kueller

“I really love Student Government, and I think the reason why is because I’m the kind of person who is able to see problems and wants to give back, so in my mind trying to do everything possible to have a positive impact on people’s lives is really fulfilling to me. I like doing everything I can to make sure other people’s lives and situations at Iowa State are improved.”

What would you consider to be your greatest accomplishment in Student Government?

Max Kueller

“We’re working with the Daily, Health and Wellness Committee and the Director of Health and Wellness, Charlotte Everist. We started a project to centralize all of the resources that the university offers, whether it’s mental health resources, DEI [diversity, equity and inclusion] resources [or] financial resources because if you think about it, there’s a lot of resources that the university offers, but they are spread out everywhere so it’s really difficult to find them.”

Anna Hackbarth

“Something that I’m super excited about and passionate about working on is my partnership with Director Everist of Health and Wellness and Senator Kueller to tie in a bunch of different resources to create a website for student wellness. It will have a bunch of different resources on a city-wide level, university-wide and individual college resources– resources that impact every aspect of your well-being. For example, it will have physical well-being resources if you have food insecurities. If you need access to technology during class, if you need financial support, if you need crisis help– it will have all of these collective avenues for individuals to utilize in whatever situation they may be in.”

What are the biggest issues facing your constituents, and how will you address them?

Jessica Guerrero

“I feel like being a multicultural student at Iowa State is hard because it is a predominantly white institution, but through Iowa State, I have learned about a lot of different organizations like the MSA [Multicultural Student Affairs] office, and so I feel like I know a large community of multicultural students. I want to be someone they can come and talk to if there is ever an issue or feel like they need help in their organizations. I feel like something I see in the engineering community a lot are students being constantly stressed, overwhelmed and overworked. I know there are a lot of organizations that work to bring those levels of stress down and provide a safe space for engineering students to come and relax, so I want to see what I could do to support those student organizations.”

Anna Hackbarth

“I think one of the largest problems facing the student body that Student Government can do better about addressing is reaching out to students and letting them know what we do, and if you have a problem with literally anything, you can talk to us because we are a resource to help you find people to change that problem or change it ourselves. I think the Student Government needs more outreach, and that can help solve a lot of these smaller issues.”

“For engineering students, a lot of students don’t feel supported by the college and don’t know how to address these concerns with upper-level administrators without sounding ungrateful or rude, so we are planning a dean’s forum for our college to address these concerns in a safe space.”

Max Kueller

“I think the biggest issues facing my constituents are probably having to do with the resources the college offers. It’s probably common knowledge, but engineering is a pretty tough field to go into. A lot of the courses we take are pretty rough.”

“In the process of leading a breakout group [during an engineering student council general meeting] it was really difficult for us to come up with things that the college and the university does for engineering students, but specifically the college. That was a problem for me because, as a member of Student Government, I have regular meetings with the deans every month, so it’s probably fair to say that I am one of the people that have a better understanding of what the college does, and even I was struggling to come up with things. That’s not to say that the college doesn’t do anything. I just think there needs to be more outreach.”

What are your qualifications for being a Senator?

Max Kueller

“I think my motives are in the right place because I do think I’m pretty good at seeing the problems that the students face and wanting to reach out to student groups individually to hear them and make them feel heard and understood. Combine that with Student Government experience.”

Jessica Guerrero

“I was on the student council for four years of high school, so I know how much goes into Student Government and the time commitment. Additionally, I feel like I am part of two underrepresented groups at Iowa State, the first one being a student of color and the other being a woman in engineering. Like I said, I want to be someone others can confide in and come to.”

Anna Hackbarth

“I think my biggest qualification is being open to hearing what the people who vote for me have to say. My technical qualifications include being the vice president of administration for Engineering Student Council, I’ve been the co-president of Engineers Week for two years, I’m parliamentarian for my sorority, I’m in marching band leadership as section leader, but those don’t mean as much for senate as being open to listening to others, respecting others’ opinion, and being teachable.”

Why should students vote for you?

Anna Hackbarth

“I think students should vote for me because, throughout my time at Iowa State, I have been fortunate enough to find a community that I love and get involved in so many different ways, as well as building connections that can help bring about change and discover a lot of resources that I can bring awareness to. But, I think students should vote for me because I genuinely care about this community and this university, and I want to make it a space where everyone feels as welcome and supported as I did.”

Max Kueller

“My platform is pretty simple, I have a few things. I want to increase awareness of students in Student Government. The big thing I mentioned was making students aware of the resources the college offers and seeing if the college can do more, so acting as the intermediary step between that… I try to find a balance between feasibility and impact and I think I have found a platform that will have a lot of impact, but I am very confident that I can actually see tangible results.”

Jessica Guerrero

“I feel like I am not afraid to voice the way I feel and be out there. I just feel like you can trust me to listen and see what I can do for you.”