Aggie story
Beginning his freshman year, business junior Ben Ikwuagwu dove headfirst in the Aggie experience.
Ikwuagwu fell in love with the traditions and wanted to be able to spread this to future students, prompting him to get involved in the Aggie Orientation Leader Program. This was the first time Ikwuagwu saw up close the issues students face.
“Through two years in this program, I would constantly have conversations with these leaders about things like, ‘What A&M could do to improve our bus system?’ or ‘What it would take for us to make A&M more inclusive for each and every student?’” Ikwuagwu said. “These conversations led students, like me, to actively seek change on our campus find ways to motivate and inspire others to do the same.”
Helping students is what Ikwuagwu continued to strive to do when he became a Supplemental Instruction leader for microeconomics his sophomore year.
“A month into the program, I was mentoring students about transitioning into college, helping them develop better study habits and facilitating discussions that helped them learn the lecture material better,” Ikwuagwu said. “In addition to this growth, I would constantly search for ways in which the SI program could be improved.”
Ikwuagwu continued to stay involved his junior year, but also began to meet with administration and faculty to address the issues he saw in university practices leading to his push to become student body president.
“I began to meet with lots of administrators on campus and discuss ways in which we could improve on many of our current practices at this university,” Ikwuagwu said. “The most important thing that was learned from those meetings with administrators is that [the student body president] position will be extremely tough.”

Platform
Ikwuagwu said his platform consists of three main points: Enhance student services, support academic excellence and encourage critical dialogue on campus.
“My ‘Eat Local’ initiative will take the on-campus dining experience, off-campus, through developing partnerships with local restaurants,” Ikwuagwu said. “My ‘Supporting Stronger Minds Initiative’ will focus on continued research of mental health while also decreasing the stigmatization behind these illnesses.”
Through his experience with the Academic Success Center (ASC) as an SI leader, Ikwuagwu wants to make the tutoring and academic experience more successful for students.
“I will fight for financial and practical support of services like the Academic Success Center,” Ikwuagwu said. “With more support of the ASC, we can save students money by reducing the dependence on third-party tutoring services.”
Ikwuagwu said one of his main priorities is fostering a more inclusive environment for students at Texas A&M.
“My third goal is to move our university from reacting to dramatic events to proactively cultivating an inclusive environment by encouraging critical dialogue that enables our students to learn from each other and continue the growth we’ve made as a university,” Ikwuagwu said. “Change doesn’t happen easily on our campus, but I want to put in any amount of time it takes to make a positive impact on this university.”