Associated Student President Michael Pratt was responsible to represent the voices of 17,557 Chico State students.
Pratt humbly said he did his best to represent those voices while helping with the transition of Chico State presidents, managing an ever-increasing hostility in campus political culture and figuring out how to best deal with a tuition increase.
With only a month left in his presidency, Pratt reflects on his time in office and what the future has in store for him.
Looking Back
When first elected as A.S. President, Pratt set a goal of improving the shared governance of Chico State between students and the administration. By the time Pratt leaves, he will have pushed forward a statement that outlines students as a part of the process in shared governance. This statement will be the first of its kind, never appearing in any other California State Universities or colleges nationally.
“We’re one of the few institutions to take the student voices seriously,” Pratt said. “I spent a great amount of time making sure students have that right, that’s it’s embattled in our culture and psyche. Really in how we do our things here at Chico State to include students from now on.”
Pratt says working with new Chico State President Gayle Hutchinson has been phenomenal. According to Pratt, President Hutchinson has an abundance of energy and it’s been refreshing.
“I think people get this idea of what an administrator is, a cold calculating individual,” Pratt said. “Gayle is just wonderful, because of her energy and her passion. You can tell she really cares about everything she does.”
Working with President Hutchinson and the statement on shared governance among other things will be what Pratt says he wants to be remembered for.
“I think at the very least, I was able to really get a stronger voice for students at the table,” Pratt said. “That my policy acumen came across as demonstrating student ability to actually participate in the decision making process.”
Looking Forward
Pratt thinks it will be difficult for him step entirely away from A.S. government. He plans to be involved as much as he can possibly can.
“I think that I have so much knowledge on how things work, it’s kind of a waste for me to walk away from everything and say, ‘I’m not going to help anyone or do anything.’ I’m not that kind of person,” Pratt said. “Even though I’m retiring from this position I’ll probably be a part of the department or wherever I’m needed and help out.”
George Johnston can be reached at [email protected] or @gjohnston786 on Twitter.
