Simeon Daferede ’25
Presidential Candidate
My time at our law school has inspired me to not just to become a better lawyer, but an even better person thanks to becoming a part of this wonderful UVA Law family. Yet, our institution can always improve to allow everyone to be a part of our family whether it be through our resources, increased representation, or accommodations for our student body. As SBA President, I aim to campaign on extending accessibility to our events, our campus, and to academic success for our peers. Below are some of my ticket’s ideas.
To improve access to our events, I would decrease the prices for our marquee events—Barrister’s Ball, the PILA Auction, and Fauxfield—by allowing payment plans for Law School events. To improve the safety of our social events, I will work with SBA to create a team of volunteers that can act as designated “sober monitors” that would be points of contact for attendees to call or locate at an event to report if they feel unsafe or need a way to get home. Next, I would propose partnering with rideshare services for off-grounds events by providing attendees with codes, which would increase access to and from events safely. Lastly, we would plan a Law School Family Weekend. Our family members are only able to visit our campus in the beginning at orientation and at the end at graduation. But they never get to fully experience our community on a day dedicated just for them.
Second, our team will work with our administration to improve access to campus resources. I would begin with improving student access to parking spaces by ensuring clearer signage for permit parking and better enforcement of the Visitor’s Pass for events. Next, I would advocate to increase our financial aid options. We must have more need-based scholarships for incoming students; we need our law school to aid its future public servants with 3L Summer Stipends to study for the Bar. Further, I will push our administration to hire more OPP Counselors to increase the proportion of students to counselors. Additionally, I would ensure our library space is sacred during finals season for Law School students only by installing a Key Swipe Card to the library doors. Lastly, I would fight for better accessibility options for our student body during finals week by negotiating with administration to allow students to take their final flex exams on Sundays, to submit the flex exams with larger submission windows, and to provide easier access to testing spaces for students with learning accommodations.
I am prepared to undertake the responsibilities to run our existing SBA Committees and to execute these measures based on my prior leadership experiences and current involvement at this Law School. Currently, I serve on the Admitted Students Open House Cabinet, where I work with admissions to execute the school’s largest event for prospective students. I also serve as the Academic Chair for LPS where I have created initiatives to give access to academic and professional resources for LPS Members. Before law school, I worked at a research non-profit where I co-lead the implementation and project management of interventions designed to eradicate Youth Homelessness. During my undergraduate studies, I led UVA’s UPC equivalent, the Major Activities Board, to use our $250,000+ budget to book critically acclaimed musical acts, to procure sponsorships from local vendors, and to create an arts program fundraiser for local schools. I have cherished my time at UVA Law, and I believe that my experiences and our ideas can and will foster the community we deserve.
Ginny Reams ’25
Presidential Candidate
Hi everyone! For those of you who I have not gotten the pleasure to meet, my name is Virginia “Ginny” Reams, and I am running to be your next SBA President. If my name looks familiar, it is probably because my introductions usually start with a “Good Morning and Happy Monday!” as I have spent the past year serving as Secretary on the Executive Board of SBA.
Being a part of the Executive Board for the past year has put me in the unique position to witness firsthand the intricacies of the presidential role and the commitment that is required to perform it successfully. I have been able to develop a deeper understanding of what policies in the organization are successful and which are not—it is not lost on me that the student body is often frustrated with SBA, and students feel as if the organization is simply a soundboard for their complaints. Nolan Edmonson and I are running to change that. Our campaign is focused on refreshing the SBA structure, enriching the student experience, and creating space for student collaboration.
Firstly, we plan to refresh the committee structure that is currently in place by creating concrete goals for each committee to achieve throughout the year. In doing this, we hope to revitalize successful events of the past like Mental Health Week and Spirit Week, while additionally encouraging our committee members to create new programming. Further, we plan to have more direct Executive Board involvement on the Barrister’s Committee by placing either the Vice President or Treasurer as a permanent sitting member. We hope that this addition will alleviate continuing logistical concerns surrounding the event.
Secondly, we hope to enrich the student body experience. SBA is responsible for Fauxfield, Barrister’s, and many other signature events that students look forward to each year. In order to hold SBA accountable, we plan to publish a calendar at the beginning of the semester of the dates of these events. Additionally, this communication will include standardized event ticketing procedures and timelines in order to assuage current student frustrations.
Lastly, and most importantly, we are promising to prioritize student collaboration and communication throughout our tenure. Nolan and I plan to engage the student voice by having regular and open communication with not only student leaders, but the entirety of the student body. In order to achieve this, we plan to increase SBA collaborations with a wide range of student organizations, while specifically bolstering support for affinity organizations, so we can ensure that each student feels welcomed in the greater UVA community. Further, we will be opening the SBA office to public weekly office hours so that we can hear from any student who may have a concern or an idea.
If you got this far, I truly appreciate your time to listen to our ideas. I genuinely believe that Nolan and I have the combined experience and passion to take SBA to a level that it has never been. We would be truly humbled to be elected your next SBA President and Vice President and will work tirelessly to make this place that is so special to us, even more so.
Laura-Louise Rice ’25
Presidential Candidate
Hi everyone! My name is Laura-Louise Rice and I am humbled to be running to be your next SBA President. As I reflect on my time at UVA Law, these past two years have been filled with friendship, support, and memories that will last a lifetime. If elected SBA President, my goal will be to foster opportunities for each of you to similarly find deep fulfillment in your experience at UVA Law.
I’m running to make SBA more ACTIVE in the Law School along with my friends: Rahul, Asha, Mark, and Amelia. Our platform is ACTIVE – Accountability, Communication, Transparency, Inclusivity, Vibes, and Engagement. An ACTIVE SBA allows us to focus on the student experience from multiple angles by empowering student organizations, engaging in meaningful advocacy, and hosting events where everyone feels welcome. We believe that each of these tenets embodies our vision to make SBA approachable and reliable to both student organizations and the broader student body.
Accountability, Communication. Transparency. As SBA President, my time, my energy, and my efforts will be yours. Accountability, communication, and transparency all work hand in hand to make sure that each of you feels heard and your concerns feel answered. It is the SBA President's job to be vocal on behalf of students to Law School Administration. As we welcome a new Dean, I plan to leverage the many relationships that I have already established with Law School Administration to maintain a culture of collaboration and accountability. I will ensure that, when student concerns arise, a clear path to potential solutions can be found. I believe that the ability to self-govern as students comes with great responsibility, which I will approach with accountability, communication, and transparency.
Inclusivity. Vibes. Engagement. These efforts function to ensure everyone feels a sense of belonging here at UVA Law. I chose to attend UVA because of the collegial atmosphere that is uncommon in a law school experience, and I believe SBA plays a critical role in preserving our experience. SBA already sponsors and cosponsors so many wonderful programs, but we aim to leverage SBA’s role to make events more inclusive by considering financial constraints, having both alcoholic & non-alcoholic activities, and prioritizing the overall welfare of students. Mental health is often referred to in passing at the Law School, but we want mental health to be an ACTIVE consideration in all of our programming & advocacy.
By revitalizing SBA’s infrastructure and committees, we will ensure that SBA is a strong nucleus in the student experience at the Law School. In reflecting on my time as First Year Council President and then President of the Black Law Students Association, what I have learned most is the importance of bridge-building. SBA stands to bridge the gap between students, student organizations, and administration. We hope to be ACTIVE in bridging those gaps through organization alliance meetings, mini-org fairs, and integration of committees into much of SBA’s operations.
We recognize that SBA as it stands is often known to be an organization that provides funds and standard programming each year, but our goal is to accomplish much more. Throughout this upcoming year, an ACTIVE SBA will serve the student body as we navigate successes and challenges, both on Grounds and around the world. Strong, organized leadership that is focused on uplifting student needs will allow us to enhance individual student experiences while maintaining our collegial community. Thank you, and I look forward to getting ACTIVE with you all next year!
Toni Woods ’25
Vice Presidential Candidate
As Vice President, my campaign platform prioritizes student accessibility first and foremost. A campaign idea is only as meaningful as the students that are able to benefit from it. When considering how to best serve as Vice President, it is most important to me that as many UVA Law students are able and encouraged to participate in student life here as possible. I would aim to increase student event participation by making events more price-conscious, inclusive, diversified, and engaging.
Specifically, I propose the following plans: decreasing the prices of school events, especially hallmarks like Fauxfield, PILA, and Barrister’s Ball; increasing the safety and comfort of school events by designating sober monitors to help any incapacitated or uncomfortable students; partnering with ride-sharing companies or organizing bus shuttles or carpools to meet any transportation need; broadcasting the dates and details of events to students as early and often as feasible; participating in or at least informing the student body of more events happening in Charlottesville like Restaurant Week, concerts or performances, and the Carter Mountain Sunset Series; and involving more of the student body with events without alcohol and with invitations to include partners or family.
I am qualified to serve as Vice President because of my experience coordinating events, monitoring and serving on committees, participating in the Student Bar Association and its elections, and serving on Executive/Managing Boards and as a Senator twice. In college, I was elected Senior Chair of a student organization and performed many of the same tasks required of the SBA Vice President: planning graduation, class events, and bonding activities.
At UVA, I have served as a 1L Senator, 2L Senator, and Diversity Advisory Committee Member on the SBA. I have also served on the Managing Board of the Virginia Law & Business Review and the Executive Board of the Black Law Students Association, where I oversee my own committee and organize UVA Law’s Diversity Receptions, a formal school event for hundreds of people. I have the experience, skill, and passion to fulfill the role of Vice President and look forward to continuing to be an active participant in our student body by serving on the SBA.
Nolan Edmonson ’25
Vice Presidential Candidate
My name is Nolan Edmonson, and I am running to be your next SBA Vice President. I am excited to run for a position that will have an impact on student life, and I am pleased that I will be doing so alongside my friend, and current SBA secretary, Ginny Reams.
While I have not served in SBA before, I believe my leadership experiences at this school have prepared me to meet the challenges that lie ahead. For the past year, I have served as president of the Jewish Law Students Association, and in that role, I have spearheaded initiatives to build closer bonds between JLSA members through a number of activities. Enriching the student experience, refreshing the organization, and creating opportunities for collaborative ideas have been my watchwords as president, and they would guide me in this role as well.
The role of vice president requires that I work closely with SBA committees to ensure their goals for the year become reality. Our campaign would see to it that committees have concrete goals heading into the start of the year so that the programming like Mental Health Week and Spirit Week can be expectations that are guaranteed to every student. Part of that goal setting requires accountability on the part of SBA to follow through with what it plans. To that end, our campaign will create a “rolling” calendar of important dates to help students set their schedules so that they can maximize their involvement in SBA programming. Ideally, this calendar will include relevant information such as ticketing procedures and timelines to make the process of engagement as stress-free as possible.
Additionally, SBA must prioritize its relationships with student organizations which are the lifeblood of the student experience at this school. Speaking from personal experience, as a leader of a student organization, it was not always clear who on SBA I should turn to if I wanted to collaborate on events. Under our leadership, we would endeavor to reach out to organizations to collaborate on a wide range of events all with the intended goal of building community and fostering a sense of belonging among everyone at the Law School. In addition to reaching out, Ginny and I want to empower students to come to us with ideas that they might also have. With that in mind, we plan to open the SBA office to weekly office hours so that we can hear from students who want to be heard.
Ginny and I want to work for the betterment of the student body—enhancing and enriching the student experience at the Law School. We feel that our combined leadership experience and desire to build community will be invaluable in accomplishing that task. But it cannot be done alone. We need you and your support when you go to vote for SBA President and Vice President. We hope to have the opportunity to work tirelessly on your behalf.
Rahul Ramesh ’25
Vice Presidential Candidate
Hey everyone! My name is Rahul Ramesh and I am running on a ticket for SBA Vice President alongside Laura-Louise, Asha, Mark, and Amelia.
The community at UVA Law means the world to me. I’ve been so fortunate to have met my best friends here and to have received incredible support from the faculty. My primary motivation for running for SBA Vice President is to pay back to this community all that it has given to me. It is my desire that all students feel a sense of belonging and comfort at the Law School, and I believe there is a lot SBA can do to accomplish that goal.
Our campaign is organized around six constitutive elements: Accountability, Communication, Transparency, Inclusivity, Vibes, and Engagement (ACTIVE). From our perspective, these are crucial ingredients for any functional student government. They make certain that messaging to the broader student body is consistent and reliable and also ensure that student organizations are always well-supported and given ample notice. Perhaps more importantly, they also speak to the importance of approachability. For too long, SBA has operated as a cordoned-off entity, often leaving student organizations in the dark about their next steps. In contrast, the ACTIVE campaign is fundamentally about centering student organizations and the student experience, rather than about preserving unimportant hierarchies between organizations. We will always be available to you, we will always set clear and realistic expectations, and above all, we will always prioritize your pursuits.
This year, as SBA treasurer, I’ve had the opportunity to work with a whole host of organizations and to play a part in organizing countless events from SBA after-school socials and 1L finals support to Fauxfield and 3@3. As a consequence of that work, I am also keenly aware of the procedural cracks and fissures in the communicative network between student organizations and SBA. Going forward, we want SBA to operate in a more proACTIVE fashion: consistently reaching out to organizations to facilitate new partnerships and events, raising awareness for organizations and causes in rapidly developing areas of the law, and strengthening the relationship between the law school and the broader Charlottesville community.
It is no secret that law school can, at times, feel like an impossible demand. UVA Law distinguishes itself from the field because it can go to great lengths to help us connect with one another and create formative relationships. Whether it’s visiting the Sunset Series for the first time with your 1L section, wondering where the time went at the Midway Toast with your 2L peers, or reminiscing about the good times at the 3L Bonfire, there is so much that the Law School has to offer when it focuses on creating space for each and every student. However, it is also true that there are times when UVA Law falls short of its promise of belonging and collegiality. 2024 is slated to be a massive year for our community. Against the backdrop of a new Dean of the Law School, a likely contentious national election, and ongoing geopolitical turmoil, I believe it has never been more important to center the student voice and to be cognizant of how deeply we can all be affected by what happens in the world. While SBA is certainly not a curative, our vision for the role of student government begins from a position of care and desire to support students facing a plethora of overlaying challenges. The path forward, we believe, is for SBA to remain ACTIVE and work tirelessly with student organizations to ensure that all students feel welcome and heard.