SGA president is students’ biggest cheerleader, on and off the field

The campaign slogan “Let Me Be Your Biggest Cheerleader” was “meant to be taken literally, but also figuratively,” said Meredith Ervin ’24, a philosophy major on the pre-health track and a member of Furman’s cheerleading squad.

This fall, while she’s supporting the Paladins on the field, she will also be encouraging and advocating for all of her fellow students as the newly elected president of the Student Government Association (SGA).

“I want people to feel supported not just for their accomplishments but for who they are as a person,” Ervin said. “I want them to know that a goal is not what validates you. You are seen and heard and valued and admired and appreciated and wonderful for who you are.”

‘The most amazing community’

The senior knows the power of community firsthand, as it helped her overcome some of her own anxieties as a first-year student.

“I’m a huge introvert,” she said. “I struggle a little bit with social anxiety. I’m very nervous with public speaking. I never would have thought that I would get into student government in such a socially open role.”

But while the campus had returned to in-person instruction in Fall 2020 after the COVID-19 shutdown, Ervin was spending her first semester learning remotely from her home in San Antonio, Texas, on the advice of her father, an officer and physician at Lackland Air Force Base. The student saw involvement in SGA as a way to make up for the face-to-face connections she was missing.

“I was really trying to get involved and meet as many people as I could,” she said. “So, I built up the courage to run. I said, ‘This is college. This is my time to put myself out there and be a little bit more brave.’”

Her bravery paid off when her classmates elected her class treasurer, and she has won elections to SGA every year since.

“I found the most amazing community, and I’m so happy that I made that decision and didn’t chicken out like I wanted to multiple times,” said Ervin. “Each year, the love for SGA and the love for the Furman student body just kept growing and growing, and it’s been the most amazing experience.”

Safety nets vs. trampolines

The president’s priorities include strengthening community bonds – bridging the gap between athletes and non-athletes, ensuring that international students feel welcomed and bringing together the leaders of the more than 160 student organizations. She plans on leveraging Furman’s commitment to inclusive excellence and positive campus culture.

“I cannot stress enough how supportive the student body is here,” she said. “Friends I have at other universities and people I know who have transferred here always comment on how kind and uplifting it is.”

To those friends, Ervin describes the Furman community as “a safety net – it’s not quite a trampoline, where you’re bouncing up and down. It’s going to be supporting you and pushing you back up, but it’s not doing all the work for you. The student body and the administration do a good job in pushing you to be better, but they’re always there, and they always catch you. So you should never feel afraid to put yourself out there and try, because you can just get back up and try again.”

Ervin, who plans to attend medical school after graduation, is looking forward to getting closer to her peers and other campus organizations in her final year at Furman, even if it means further stretching her comfort zone.

“I’m looking forward to challenging myself,” she said. “I owe so much to SGA for helping me be comfortable with being uncomfortable. It’s helped so much with confidence and pushing myself to be better. I also learned that it’s OK to make mistakes, because you only come out stronger.”