Michael Falotico, music industry junior, has been elected vice president of the Student Government Association by a vote of 59.3 percent.

“I’m ecstatic. After a week of stressing over the elections, it’s nice to be done with everything, put it all behind me and get to the things that actually matter,” Falotico said, immediately following the election results announcement.

Falotico, who was also the philanthropy chairman and officer of Phi Kappa Psi fraternity, served as the director of Student Resources and the chief of staff of SGA this year. He said he gained valuable knowledge that he plans to use as vice president.

“I learned the organizational structure of SGA and how to fully utilize each individual aspect to its full potential,” he said.

The first item on Falotico’s agenda is choosing the executive staff with SGA President-elect Khaled Badr, biology junior.Falotico said that they are looking for “self-motivated leaders” who will produce quality work for the school.

Falotico plans to streamline student organizations so that those with similar goals can work together instead of competing over resources. Falotico said that during his time as vice president, he would work to increase the visibility of SGA through better promotion and encourage student participation in SGA initiatives.

“So many students live off campus. We don’t have a football team as a driving force for school spirit. So, we need to create other sorts of programming that give students a feeling of being a part of the Wolfpack,” he said.

Sean Rowland, economics sophomore, who considered himself Falotico’s campaign manager, said he is “real proud” of his friend.

“Michael has a lot of experience and has already done a lot for the school. We should expect that next year there will be a big improvement in the student body’s school pride,” Rowland said.

For Falotico, this school pride goes beyond the four years of college.

“When people leave this place, I want them to come back. I want the experience at Loyola to affect our whole lives, not just the degree we receive,” he said.

Falotico said that the perspective gained in studying music industry is reflected in his attitude toward SGA and his new position as vice president.

“The music industry is changing. If you want success, you can make it yourself without the help of a record company. That’s the same mentality I have with SGA. SGA is really what you make of it. I want to make Loyola a better place. I want to see changes, so I have to do that myself,” Falotico said.

Jennie Gutierrez can be reached at [email protected]