Frank McEwen’s bid for SGA treasurer came with a bit of soul-searching.
“My faith was a huge thing in my decision to do this," McEwen said. "I wanted to make sure that if I was going to go out for this position that I wasn’t going to do it for me, that I was gonna do it to serve the Lord and to serve others."
McEwen said he was sure to question his own motives to be sure his heart was in the right place.
"I wanted to make sure that my intentions were in the right place and that I wasn’t doing this for me," McEwen said.
McEwen said his previous work in organizations such as the Oaks Retreat, a program to help incoming students find religious organizations, has helped him build leadership skills for the position.
“I came in through [Oaks Retreat] as a freshman, then I was a counselor two years in a row,” McEwen said. “It was absolutely monumental in me finding community at Auburn, and hopefully I was able to have a similar impact on incoming freshmen that I was able to encounter through that.”
He served as a Camp War Eagle counselor in 2016, and McEwen said his time at Auburn has fostered his leadership skills.
“I wouldn’t be like ‘oh yeah, I’m definitely a leader,’ you know," McEwen said. "I’m by no means that, but I’d say that Auburn has been an incredible place for me to grow in leadership skills and interacting with people. If I’m seen as a leader, then I think it’s strictly because of the people who have poured into me and just helped me to mature as a person.”
McEwen, who served as a senator for the college of business this year prior to his victory during SGA elections, said he's rubbed shoulders with SGA service as early as his freshman year.
“I was in Freshman Forum my freshman year…that helped me to meet some people in SGA and kind of realize that that was something I was interested in," McEwen said. "This past year I got back into SGA, being a senator and an AVP [assistant vice president]."
McEwen also served as assistant executive director of The Big Event, previously an SGA-affiliated organization, in his sophomore year.
He said he was attracted to the more humble nature of the treasurer position as opposed to other SGA offices.
“It’s something that I was interested in, being that I’m a finance major, and also it’s somewhat more of a behind the scenes job," McEwen said. "It’s not a really upfront position, like say, SGA President or something like that. While I am representing the students, it’s not about the position for me. It’s about the service.”
McEwen said he hopes to work alongside, rather than above, his peers.
“My big thing about leadership is that you’re not leading from above somebody," McEwen said. "You’re leading alongside somebody, and leading by example and doing work with people. That is what I think Auburn has taught me about leadership more than anything.”
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