Brandon Carroll
 
Below is the full text for my "farewell" speech. The last speech I will ever make as the official Virginia Tech SGA President....


Inauguration Speech

Good Evening. Tonight is a great night. It is a celebration of the past, present, and the future. SGA started in 1965 as the official voice of the undergraduate students at Virginia Tech. Through the years, we have seen activism like in 1971 when Sandy Hawthorne organized a sit-in to protest the Vietnam war and the Kent State shootings….to more recently the establishment of Relay for Life, the Big Event, and the Hokie Effect.

When I look back at this past year, I cannot help but smile. What an opportunity. Where else in my life will I have the opportunity to make a tangible impact in the lives of over 23,000 students? Where else in my life will I be a student leader in the most amazing place in the world? The Hokie Nation builds leaders of high character. Leaders who value integrity, selflessness, and passion.

Stop and reflect for one second. You are all members of the Hokie Nation. To the students here tonight, we are in college. Not just any college, but one of the top Universities in the country. We have it better than 99% of the world.

What a special place.

We are a family bound by a special sense of love that cannot be adequately explained with words. We put more into relationships than we receive and we embrace that concept

What a special place

We have administrators like Leon McClinton sitting in the audience here tonight who truly care about students. I want to tell you a story about Leon when he first arrived here at Virginia. Many of you have heard this story, but for those of you who have not, here it goes: I was an RA in Pritchard and I was putting on a program for the ACC championship game when this new guy decides to come in and sit down. He looked kind of young, but no one wanted to say anything. The freshman in the lounge were a little bit intimidated. He literally sat on the floor with the 50 or so people already there and just decided to hang out with a bunch of freshman on a Saturday afternoon. Finally, someone had the courage to say “who are you?” Was he a complex director? An RA? He responds, “Well, I am the new Director of Res Life.” Everyone was amazed. Wow, the new Director of Residence Life took some time out of his day…to just…hang out with some students. My residents later told me that they were so amazed that Leon stopped by. He was easy to talk to, he was genuine, and we all had a great time. You see he actively cares for students. He genuinely has an interest in our welfare. It’s the little things that matter. Leon, I know you don’t like when I tell that story…but you know what.... those least looking for recognition are usually the most deserving.

What a special place

We have students like this year’s Executive Director of the Year, Brittany Anderson, who go above and beyond the call of duty for the welfare of the University. From organizing the largest Hokie Day ever to being heavily involved with Richmond politics, Brittany has single handily done more for SGA in the past 4 years that I have been in SGA combined. She helped change the fact that the state was going to take student fee money out of our reserve fund. She strengthened our relationship with other VA schools and showed leadership by serving as the chair of the State Council of Higher Education in Virginia Student Advisory Council.

What a special place

Now, let’s move onto the future of SGA. First and foremost, to Bo, Greer, Corbin, and Emily….congratulations. You all are about to embark on an incredible journey. I want to leave tonight with some words of wisdom that I have acquired over the years, a quote, and a challenge.

My words of wisdom start directed at you Bo. I advise you not to become the SGA President. Become the person who desires to impact students. Become the person who strives each and every day to make a tangible difference in the lives of every single undergraduate student here at Virginia Tech. Use SGA President as the vehicle to impact others. There is a big difference.

To the four of you, you report only to the student body at Virginia Tech. You will not always agree with the administration, you do have to work with them, but you do not have to follow their orders. Your job is to be loyal to students…ABOVE the University. Put students first. Period.

Your inputs will greatly exceed your outputs. Understand that understand that you may fail. Failure is an option, fear is not. Go in fearless. Use your failures as motivators.

My quote for you is this: "There are three types of people in the world: those who make things happen, those who watch things happen, and those who wonder what happened.

Make things happen. Bend the rules. Rather than ask for permission, beg for forgiveness.

And my challenge for you is this: Be a leader and build a team of leaders. You are probably thinking, well what does that mean? First, leadership is an action. When you are here next year on the podium giving your words of wisdom to the newly elected officers,, judge thyour year by what you accomplish, not what you do. There is a big difference.

You know what makes a leader? A leader is passionate. A leader truly believes in the mission of the organization. A leader always has a team-first attitude. A leader is self-motivated.


Surround yourself with leaders and you will find success.

It has been a pleasure, I wish you much luck in the future, and again congratulations.
 


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