Vice President leads by serving the team

Zoe Deno
Staff Writer

Student senators are expected to have exceptional leadership skills and Hudson Valley’s Vice President Thomas Nevins is no exception.

Nevins has worked as a leader in his youth group, his 4-H club and has even run a Snack Bar at the Rensselaer County Fair. As soon as he started college, he was eager to become a student leader.
“When I was younger, I saw this in the leaders that I surrounded myself with and I looked up to them. Now, I try to duplicate their actions and qualities as a great leader,” Nevins said in an email interview.

Nevins first worked as a freshman senator before he ran uncontested to become student body vice president. “I knew I wanted to be part of the leadership team for Student Senate, and that there was a group of fellow students that I wanted to be part of my team. Having myself as VP served the team the best,” said Nevins.

Being a Vice-President was everything Nevins expected. “As a leader, I try to engage as many people as possible, to help out as many people as possible and to always have an open mind when approaching any issue that is presented in front of myself and my team.”

Sometimes, though, Nevins has to make the difficult choices. “When the time comes for a controversial or difficult decision to be made, I always try to enter the situation with an open mind and talk to all interested parties,” Nevins said. He then evaluates the opinions of fellow members and does his own research before talking to experts.

Nevins sometimes struggles to ask for help, but he acknowledges the usefulness of the practice.
“Every good leader must know when to ask for help, and be able to admit when they are wrong. This is something that many leaders struggle with but must be able to reconcile with,” said Nevins.

Nevins believes his greatest strength is that he is open minded and just wants everyone to be happy. “The church and my family are the biggest factors in my desire to volunteer. Both play a very large role in my life and have shaped who I am today,” said Nevins.

“Volunteering, in general, has taught me that you must persevere through any situation that arises, because it will pass,” said Nevins.

“Volunteering at my church has taught me that volunteers are needed everywhere. Every time someone volunteers, it helps someone else out and can make everyone happy.”