Thor Lund and Wills Brown said they ended their year in charge of Student Government with extended student services and a more visible Student Government.

“I have no regrets,” Lund said. “We did everything we wanted to and more.” 

When Lund and Brown ran for office last year, they planned to improve student life by extending night hours on campus for libraries and food vendors, increasing safety measures on and off campus and making Student Government more transparent. 

Lund said the initiatives they planned effected more students’ everyday lives and helped show what SG can do for the campus. 

“One of the most rewarding things is to see the fruits of your labor and the smiles of Longhorns,” Lund said. 

Several of the initiatives they campaigned for have become permanent additions, including 24-hour access to the Perry-Castaneda Library and the State of the 40 Acres address, a YouTube address that will be aired at least four times a school year.

Lund and Brown said they hope SG can continue working toward initiatives they could not fully execute, including extending shuttle bus service hours for the North Campus and the Riverside areas. 

“That was obviously something we couldn’t accomplish in just one year,” Brown said. “We’re hoping Horacio and Ugeo will want to continue with that and take the next step to make that happen.”

Lund said current President Horacio Villarreal and Vice President Ugeo Williams, who took office April 2, have already said they want to continue what Lund and Brown started and bring fresh ideas to benefit students.

“Horacio and Ugeo have good ideas and as they grow into their roles they are starting to understand more about their roles and their ideas,” Lund said.

Villarreal said Lund and Brown made a significant impact on SG and on campus.

“Thor and Wills had a vision when they took office and they worked tirelessly to made that vision a reality,” Villarreal said. “There is an obvious [similarity] to many of the initiatives that we’re implemented so we’ll do what we need to do to continue their legacy. We’ve got big shoes to fill.”

As for their futures, Brown said he will join Teach for America after graduating in May, while Lund said he will be on campus for one last semester in the fall. The two have been friends since third grade.

“It’ll definitely be weird not seeing Thor every day, but I’ll just be an hour down the road in San Antonio,” Brown said. “Also, when we’re both in grad school at UT in a couple years, we’ll just run for GSA president and vice president, or heck, maybe even SG president and vice president again, so we’ll be back.”

Printed on Thursday, April 11, 2013 as Lund, Brown reflect on legacy