A new year on campus ushers newly elected positions in EMU’s Student Government Association, including SGA Co-President Philip Krabill!
Philip is a senior studying Peacebuilding and Development and Bible, Religion, and Theology. He spent his past summer working with Faith in Action, a faith-based network fighting for justice and equality and found a home in working with community organizations. Philip has been a part of EMU’s student government for a large part of his college career, working first as an SGA senator for three semesters before being newly elected as a co-president.
Though he doesn’t consider himself much for party politics, Philip sees great importance in SGA and its power in community and representation. “I think what draws me to SGA is that it’s an entity that has power in decisions that students actually care about,” he says. “It’s an honor to represent students and to be able to help make what they want to happen happen.”
He, along with his co-presidents Aman Seyoum and Faith Manickam, have a number of goals they are setting out to accomplish with their presidency, aiming to create a more welcoming campus that brings students together, especially following the major impact that COVID-19 has had on-campus life. “A lot of what COVID-19 did to impact student learning was traumatic. What we took from that time of being so divided politically is still persevering into what we are still dealing with today,” he says. “Even without that, college students deal with a lot of mental health struggles, so having resources that professors know about and are trained in for combatting that is important.”
Outside of COVID-19, Philip understands the necessity of creating safe spaces on campus. “We want to help students who don’t necessarily feel welcome on campus or feel like they have spaces on campus to have a say in the creation of spaces where they can be in community with others and share their identities.” He cites the closure of the BSA barbershop last year to make room for a COVID-19 testing facility as a major drive in that goal. “I don’t know what the decision-making was behind using that space, but I think it was really felt, and a lot of students want spaces where they don’t have to worry about how they’re presenting themselves.”
With his co-presidents, Philip also hopes to make an impact on EMU’s sustainability, reducing EMU’s carbon footprint and making it more eco-friendly. “There’s been a lot of energy around [sustainability] on campus already this year, so I think we have high hopes that there will be student involvement for making things happen.”
Hailing from Indiana, Philip finds himself drawn to Harrisonburg and the surrounding natural beauty of Rockingham County. “Indiana just has cornfields and beanfields and it’s just so flat. There are parts that are pretty, but when I go outside here, I can look in any direction, and I would like what I see.”
On-campus, Philip appreciates the welcoming and active atmosphere that EMU provides. “In one way, as college students, there’s always something we could be working on, but in another, there’s always friends who aren’t doing their homework that you can play games with or go on hikes,” he says. “There’s so much to do, and you always have some kind of fun thing happening here.”
In his free time, Philip finds himself playing ultimate frisbee or attending the wide array of athletic events on campus. He says his favorite movie is “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” and “How I Met Your Mother” is his go-to comfort show. He enjoys the tomato basil pie in the cafeteria and loves his three dogs, Henry, Pepper, and Eddie, and his cat, Daphne.
