Mariam Nguyen ’26 hopes her passion for student government inspires others to take the reins

Senior Mariam Nguyen ’26 is serious about advocacy. She advocates for herself, for her fellow students, her campus and her community. For the past four years, all of those efforts have started at Furman, and since last August, Nguyen has taken her passions past the university gates and into the offices of local, state and federal lawmakers.

In her role as student body president, the Charleston native has worked tirelessly on issues that affect Furman students. She admitted to working some 60 hours per week with the SGA in addition to her academic responsibilities and maintaining a semblance of work-life balance.. But as a politics and international affairs major with an eye on a career in public service, Nguyen knows that kind of dedication comes with the territory.

“My biggest goal is to advocate for all aspects of student life at Furman,” she said. “That includes advocating for the Furman student body to government.”

It starts at home

Greenlink is the public transit system for Greenville County.

As part of its services, Greenlink provides transportation from Furman to downtown Greenville, Nguyen said, but there are no direct routes from Furman to Prisma Health facilities or West Greenville, for example. She and others hope to convince government to expand routes as well as renovate bus shelters, including the one at the university entrance, she said.

“We are planning to speak at County Council,” she said. “We also want to include with the transit development plan creation of informational brochures and magnets to share with students to get them more aware of Greenlink transportation resources.”

About half of students have cars, she said, noting just over 1,000 parking passes were issued by campus police.

A survey of 100 students revealed that roughly 10 percent have used Greenlink’s service, but 80% would use it if it offered different routes, she said.

“There are students who volunteer or work at Prisma hospital or have internships in West Greenville,” she said, “and it’s difficult for them to get to those places without a car or rideshare services.”

Overall, the Student Government Association has about 36 students, she said, while there are six in the government relations branch responsible for the transit initiative. Student voices are an important part of the conversation as the county begins its budget process for the year, said Greenville County Councilwoman Liz Seman, who is also vice president for community and government relations at Furman.

“It’s exciting to see young people who are interested in issues that directly affect them and take the time to better understand how the operations work,” she said. “It’s important for them to have a stake in what’s happening.”

Far-reaching impact

A contingent of Furman University SGA representatives visited Washington, D.C. and South Carolina representatives to advocate for Pell grants.

SGA’s efforts have taken students all the way to Washington, D.C. to meet with members of the South Carolina delegation to advocate the federal government to maintain the maximum amount for Pell grants, she said.

Nguyen recently led a group of six SGA members to meet with Sen. Lindsey Graham and Rep. Jim Clyburn, among others. They came with policy memos, talking points and research to support their case. Rather than just observing, they were actively participating in the process, making time to air their concerns about an issue so many of their peers and families face.

“These are the people we see on talk shows and news programs all the time, but at the end of the day they are public servants. They work for us,” Nguyen said.

“My main goal is getting Furman students to be part of the broader question when issues are discussed,” she continued. “People have been very positive towards us. And local leaders are genuinely interested in our plans and goals.”

Leadership in action

Dean of Students Jason Cassidy, who is the advisor for SGA, said Nguyen has a special passion for politics and advocacy work and has accomplished a lot in her year as SGA president.

“She’s got a real vision for what student advocacy could and can be,” he said. “She’s planted some very strong seeds with her peers about what local and federal government advocacy can look like and how to be more engaged citizens in the community. It’s pretty cool.”

Meanwhile, as her senior year draws to a close, Nguyen said she’s been empowered by all the opportunities she’s had at Furman.

“I can’t describe how impactful it has been with educational development, career development and personal development,” she said. “It’s been a great place to form the beginnings of my civic engagement.”