SGA candidates campaign with service, seek transparency

Every year, Biola University’s Student Government Association (SGA) holds elections for a new president and vice president as well as new members of the Senate. The Senators represent each residence hall with senators to represent commuters, too. 

In this episode, host Reagan Glidewell interviews the president and vice president candidates Faith Ising and Hillary Ramirez about their campaign and mission for the 2025-2026 academic year. Ising served as a Senator for Sigma Hall while Ramirez served as a campaign manager for the current SGA president and vice president. They dive deep into their mission to be “led by His light” through a campaign focused on servitude and transparency within the Biola community.

More information about this week’s headlines: “Crash the Superbowl” commercial; She Loves Me tickets; Los Angeles protests; tariffs; Border patrol; AI Action Summit; M23 Rebels

Find more stories at The Chimes’ website. Find the transcript of this episode here.

Creators and Guests

Producer

Reagan Glidewell

Producer of The Chimes Weekly podcast

What is The Chimes Weekly?

Bite-sized podcast episodes with your top news stories from The Chimes, Los Angeles County, the nation and the world, with an interview with a Chimes writer to close out your week.

By Biola University students, for Biola University students. Previously known as Chimes Rundown and KBR Daily News Updates by KBR The Torch.

>> Reagan Glidewell: From the Torch Podcast Network. This is the Chimes Weekly. I'm Reagan Glidewell reporting from Biola University. It's Friday, February 7th.

>> Faith: Student government has so much potential. This is a servant, you know, leadership job. But there's a very big emphasis on the servant aspect of it and being able to serve students because that's why at the end of the day, that's why we're doing this.

>> Reagan Glidewell: Later on, we'll hear more from SGA President and Vice President candidates Faith Ising and Hillary Ramirez, where they will tell us a little bit more about their campaign and their vision for the 2025-2026 academic year. But first, here's this week's headlines. Biola's spring musical She Loves Me opened yesterday evening, capturing the love story of Amalia and Georg in a timeless romantic comedy. Tickets are on sale at biola.edu/events $18 for students and faculty and $23 for the general public. See the show notes for more information. The Eagles hosted Azusa Pacific University for their annual rivalry basketball games on February 1. The men's team won 76 to 68 while the women's team lost 65 to 44. Biola and APU SGA programs hosted at gathering on the Jesus Saves Parking Structure after the games, bringing the schools together for an evening of worship. Biola Athletics also hosted their first ever Athletic Alumni Day. The events included various alumni games and activities, a joint cookout and more. Biola's golf program will discontinue in the 2025-2026 academic year. Biola Admin cite factors such as the rise in cost for the sport and the lack of access to proper training facilities. Athletic scholarships will continue to be honored through the golfer's undergraduate education along with transfer opportunities. This Sunday, the Kansas City Chiefs will face off with the Philadelphia Eagles in the Super Bowl hosted at the Superdome in New Orleans. The Chiefs look to capture their third consecutive Super Bowl victory. Biola alumni Nate Norell and Dylan Bradshaw received the most votes from the public for the Doritos "Crash the Super Bowl contest after securing their spots as one of the top three ads. As a result, the commercial "Abduction" will air during the Super Bowl along with the crew winning a $1 million cash prize. Current Biola sophomore Garrison Keaton worked on the set on VFX Protests continue throughout Los Angeles and other Southern California cities over sightings of ICE in various Hispanic neighborhoods and the beginning of the deportations. Protesters called for a National Day of Action this past Monday as they gathered in downtown Los Angeles. Planned walkouts and business closures also occurred throughout the city. Wreckage is continuing to be removed from the Potomac river after the tragic collision between the American airline plane and U.S. army helicopter on January 30th. As of Monday, 55 victims have been identified. President Trump announced that he would be implementing new tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China. Mexico and Canada tariffs were announced to be 25% and China would be 10% on exported goods to the United States. President Trump hopes the tariffs will curtail the shipments of fentanyl and undocumented migrants across the border. While the tariffs on Canada and Mexico have been postponed, China has not given in to the presidential demands and has countered by implementing their own tariffs. Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum sent 10,000 troops to the US border to prevent the trafficking of fentanyl from Mexico to the US • The action connects with a deal between President Sheinbaum and President Trump to prevent steep tariffs on Mexico. The Artificial Intelligence Action Summit will take place in Paris next week hosting leaders, CEOs and organizational representatives to discuss topics such as public interest AI and global AI governance. US Vice President J.D. Vance is set to attend the two day conference along with the President of France and the Prime Minister of India who will co host the summit. The decade long conflict continues between the Rwanda backed rebels known as M23 and the Congolese leaves government. The fighting has now displaced 4 million people in eastern Congo. The UN reported that 300,000 people are currently sheltering in camps outside Goma, a major city in Congo with much of the population without water and electricity. As of Tuesday, the rebels announced they would begin a unilateral ceaseire for the movement of displaced people and humanitarian aid. That's it for this week's headlines. The Student Government Association or better known as SGA holds elections every year for a new president, vice president and members of the Senate. This week I interviewed the presidential candidate Faith Ising and her vice president partner Hillary Ramirez to hear more about their mission. Here's my conversation with the candidates. Faith and Hillary thanks for joining me.

>> Reagan Glidewell: So first I want to dive in by asking a little bit about your guys backgrounds. So let's start with you Faith more just how you got interested in SGA and what prompted you to run for president.

>> Faith: Yeah, of course. Um, so I served on SGA my sophomore year. I was Sigma senator back when um, they changed all, you know, some of the dorms and made them all freshman dorms and so it was really exciting. It was a really cool new experience and I loved it so much. I loved being on SGA I loved being able to work with people. Um, I want to be a lawyer. I want to go to law school. And so SGA has always been something that I've wanted to be involved in and a part of. Um, and I'd been wanting to run basically since my sophomore year, but the timing was just never right. And so I'm really grateful that, for the most part, it's all working out.

>> Reagan Glidewell: Now and then for Hillary, how did you get involved in SGA?

>> Hillary: So I haven't personally served in SGA as a senator or anything, but I was the campaign manager last year for Jacqueline McCauslin and Andrew Ambrose, who are our current president, vice president. So I just loved while my time of being a campaign manager, getting to know Biola students, getting to know what they liked, what drive them, what they wanted in a president and vice president, and just having that connection with the students and looking for what they liked really captivated my attention. And I was like, whoa, I want to be more involved with, um, Biola as a whole. And I did, uh, consider applying to some SGA positions, but then it just didn't work out with my schedule for this year. In regards to how I ended up running as Faith's vice president. Well, that's a little funny story. Um, so Faith and I are very good friends. I think we're really good, close friends. I would call her my best friend.

>> Faith: Likewise.

>> Hillary: Thank God. So, actually, um, a couple weeks ago, she invited me to go on a little matcha date. I was actually a bit sad because I had just, um, gotten rejected from a job offer that I was really excited for. So we were like, let's go get some matcha And I was like, sure. And then while we were walking to my car to drive over, she was like, hey, so I'm thinking about running for SGA president, and I can't think of anyone else to have as my vice president would you be down to run? And I went, absolutely. I was like, let's get started. Let's start planning this. We got this. And with my experience as a campaign manager last year, I kind of knew what drew the Biola population. So we just started planning from there, and we pulled off a lot in.

>> Faith: A very, very short, short amount. Yeah. And, I mean, I knew I wanted Hillary to run with me because I don't think I've ever met someone who's organized and driven and care so much about people as she does. And she already had the experience with working with, um, Jackie and Andrew, um, and their campaign team, and so I was like, oh, this is perfect. And so, yeah, I'm really, really grateful for her.

>> Hillary: I think we balance out each other's strengths and weaknesses really well. Like, um, where I lack strength, Faith is really strong in. And then there are areas where she isn't as strong, but I am. And I think together, that just makes us like a power duel, you, you know.

>> Faith: Oh, yeah. Especially knowing, like, as someone who served on Senate and knowing really well the responsibilities of the president and vice president, I could so see how well that role fits Hillary, um, and how well I think being president would fit me. So I'm really, really grateful. Yeah.

>> Hillary: And even if I don't have, like, experience, like being in SGA in Biola, I did serve all four years of high school on student government. I was the secretary. And again, those organization skills and making sure everything's always on task, and I've always been very well of supporting whoever was the president and vice president.

>> Reagan Glidewell: Hillary, you mentioned that you commute, and so obviously there's a good portion of the student body that does commute. Not not everybody lives on campus. And so I know you did live on campus your first two years, but now that you're a commuter, how do you see your experiences playing out as the vice president of SGA?

>> Hillary: Yeah, so I think I've been very fortunate in the sense that I know what it's like to live on campus, and now I know what it's like to commute over an hour to get here. So I think I can relate to both sides of the Biola, uh, experience from a dormer to a commuter. And I think I just want to kind of bridge that gap between the commuters and the people that live on campus. I feel like all us commuters know each other really well, and we kind of bond, and we're like, oh, where are you commuting from? And then everyone who lives on campus who has a strong community with whatever dorm they live in. So I kind of want to bridge that gap and unite more like the commuters with people that live on campus. And I also want to make sure that the commuters feel that they still have a voice in student government, that they still have a voice in the Biola atmosphere, even if they don't essentially, like, live here. I want them to also feel that it's their home.

>> Reagan Glidewell: Yeah, absolutely. I want to go back to you, Faith. So now we got a lot of the background. I want to focus more on your mission statement and your plans for, for the 2025-2026 school year. So your mission statement says that you seek to support students in all areas of life, especially academically and spiritually and connected with that, uh, you also said providing some more scholarship opportunities so students feel empowered to

>> Reagan Glidewell: become who God calls them to be.

>> Reagan Glidewell: So I think that's really cool. So can you explain a little bit how specifically you see this playing out next year?

>> Faith: Yeah. So I think that I was really, really fortunate to have served as a senator before trying to go for president, um, especially because I got to know, I mean, of course, the people in my dorm, so in Sigma, but I think the Biola student population as a whole, in a lot more intimate way, because part of it was my job, but the other part of it was, like, I became a senator because I loved getting to work with people, getting to talk to students, and trying to figure out how to best advocate for them. And something that was really, really cool was that my. When I was on SGA I got to be a part of their revamped scholarship committee. Because SGA had provided scholarships in the past, they stopped. And so, um, Izzy and Liz, our former president and vice President, really wanted to bring that back and try to figure out, like, okay, well, with the rising cost of tuition, what can SGA do to help lessen kind of that blow? And so I got to learn, like, okay, so this is what we can do. This is what we can't do. This is how we determine, you know, what group of people gets priority first. Especially, you know, using FAFSA and all that, how the interview process would work to even get a scholarship to begin with, um, and how we can make it as unbiased as possible. And so I would want to, of course, continue in the work that, that they've done, that Jackie and Andrew have done, but also try to see how I could make it an option for everyone. Not everyone in the sense of, like, oh, everyone gets a scholarship, but, like, really trying to figure out how I can best meet the needs of students that really need it, or, like, maybe for every reason, it's harder for them to apply for a scholarship or for something like that, uh, for them to be eligible for it. So trying to figure out, like, okay, how can I make this more of an opportunity for as many people as I can so that the most, uh, can benefit from it.

>> Reagan Glidewell: Hillary, how do you see this being played out?

>> Hillary: Yeah, So I think something that's really important for us as well is to make sure that every student in Biola feels represented by the Senate and feels like their voices are being heard. Whether that is that they want to know more transparency as to where the money of our tuition goes to. I think that's something they have a right to know. We also want to make sure that, um, those that need scholarships are able to get them. And we want to prioritize for students to not feel overwhelmed as to not knowing what, what's happening or feeling like they're not being heard or represented. So we just want to make sure to be that voice that says, okay, we're listening to you and here's what we're going to do about it. Because I think something that's really important when there's a problem is to come up with brainstorm solutions, but you also need to tell the person that has the problem what your solutions are going to be.

>> Faith: Yeah. And also too, like, I've had so many people tell me that they are either they either have left Biola because of the rising tuition, or they can't afford to be here and they have to take out a bunch of loans. And I'm just like, that's terrible. And it's really. And I know, like, how difficult it is to just have to leave a community that you love so deeply and that you're a part of, and that's really been your home. So I think we're really looking at that aspect too, because I think, like, you know, Biola does train really good students and they do do a lot of really good work. And so we're trying to figure out, like, how can we best support Biola's mission and also students themselves so that, you know, everyone can have an opportunity to be here, to stay here, um, and to not have their time here be stressful.

>> Reagan Glidewell: Yeah.

>> Hillary: Because at the end of the day, the heart of Biola is its community and its students. So we just want to make sure they're able to stay here and they're able to also stay here in a happy sense and that not affect their relationship with God.

>> Reagan Glidewell: Yes. That's really great. I love that. And then the second part of the mission statement that I haven't touched on yet, which you did kind of mention a little bit, is that you guys want to strive for transparency between the administration and students. And I think that definitely relates to the rise of, um, tuition and seeing where does our, um, tuition you know money really go? So we can start with Hillary, you first, and then Faith you can answer right after that.

>> Hillary: Yeah. So I think with transparency, what we're going for more is just students know what the money is being used for. They know where it's going. And I think that creates more, um, a sense of security. Because personally, when you spend money, like I'm thinking like bank statements, right. You use your card, but you know where it went. So then you can go back and revise. Okay, so I did spend that money. Right. It went here. So I think just students want to know what's going on with the money they're spending and how it's being used. And we kind of want to bridge that transparency for them to know, okay, this is how your money is being used. It's not going to waste, it's being used in this way. And I think it just creates more of, um, a space of calmness. We also want to encourage more students to know that they can listen in when we have Senate, like, you're welcome to come in and hear what's being passed, how the money's being used, what people are discussing. And I feel like that's not a really well known fact around campus. And we just. That's another way of like bridging the gap, just getting that information out there.

>> Faith: Yeah. And I mean, I'd like to highlight too that it's not like we don't want to just be like, yes, we're only gonna be transparent about this one, like, seemingly big issue. I think in general, the whole role of student government is to bridge the gap between administration and students and to be this, like, in between, uh, of being able to communicate whatever is going on with the, Biola administration to students and what students, uh, wants and needs are then back to administration. And so, um, I think like some big things are, um, not a lot of students are aware why BIOLA does certain things the way that they do. And so I think it would be really cool if people in admin would be able to either like, have a talk or have a lecture or have something, um, or maybe send out an email to explain, like, hey guys, like, this is why this is happening or this is why this thing works in this way. Um, and yeah definitely with Hillary about people being able to sit in on Senate, especially because we get a lot of guest speakers. Um, or at least when I was on Senate, that was something that Izzy and Liz really prioritized, um, so that we as like senators could understand, like, oh, wow, like, not only do they care about us, they're interested in helping us understand why they make the decisions that they do. And so I think it'd be really, really cool if students could like, come in and knew that they could sit in when we get like, a guest speaker from admin or somewhere else. Um, because it really helps, like we're trying to say, it brings that transparency, it bridges that gap, and it helps, I think, everyone have more understanding and clarification so there's less confusion, I think.

>> Hillary: Uh, o. So Faith and I, if elected, we also want to bridge the gap between us and the students at Biola. Like, we would love to get to know students, um, just for them to know who we are. Because I think it's important for the community to know, okay, who is my president, who is my vice president? Um, what are they like? Right. So we also want to bridge that gap if we were elected.

>> Faith: Yeah. And it's just like, student government has so much potential, and we really want to live up to that potential. Um, especially. Yeah, of course. Because, I mean, this is a servant, you know, leadership job, but there's a very big emphasis on the servant aspect of it and being able to serve students. Because that's why, like, at the end of the day, like, that's why we're doing this. That's why we want to do this, is because we want to be able to serve and support students. Students as best as we can. And so that they can know that they have someone in their corner, they have someone fighting for them, they have someone or two people that are just go in and advocate for them, you know, uh, like, alongside their own senators. And so that's what we really hope to do.

>> Reagan Glidewell: Yeah, absolutely. And then before we wrap up, I just want to give you guys the opportunity to say anything that we haven't talked about. So do you guys have any closing thoughts?

>> Hillary: Yeah. So I would just like to touch real quickly on. So our slogan is led by his light, and it's based on our theme verse. And I think that's something, if we're elected, we want to embody and is to always submit and surrender everything to God and have his light be the one that's guiding us throughout our process. Because I think it's very important to come into a position like this with humbleness and, um, a heart posture that's ready to surrender to God and ask for his guidance.

>> Faith: Yeah. And especially too, because we were thinking a lot about the library and that's why it's in our logo is because so much of it is just emphasizing this idea of light and God's light. Um, and we just really want to be the people that help illuminate things and help, you know, bring clarity to stuff. But also too, that, like Hillary said, we're being led by God's light in everything that we're doing. Um, and we're using that as our guidance.

>> Reagan Glidewell: That's so awesome. Well, I'm really excited that I got to talk to you guys. Um, and then good luck. Yeah.

>> Hillary: Thanks for having us.

>> Reagan Glidewell: Yeah. Thank you so much. So this is Reagan Glidewell for the Chimes Weekly. Thank you so much for your time.

>> Reagan Glidewell: Thanks for listening, as always. If you enjoyed the show, leave us a review and share it with a friend or roommate. To see more about Faith and Hillary's campaign, check out their Instagram @ising_ramirez To follow the stories we covered in this week's episode and read more about what SGA does for the student body, see the show notes. You can also check out more at chimesnewspaper.com This episode was produced by Reagan Glidewell, with international headlines written Izah DeFigh engineered by Hope Li and Jason Lee, with music from Warner Chappell Productions. I'm Reagan Glidewell. We'll see you next week.