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Meet the Class of 2021’s student organization leaders

Ryan Keane

Honor Committee Chair: 
Ryan M. Keane (Batten ’21)

A primary challenge is to take Honor activities virtual, says Keane, from Gainesville, Virginia. But he has other goals, including revisiting the Informed Retraction, which lets students make amends for an Honor System offense. “I’m still confident we can start to have these discussions to make our system much more fair,” says Keane, a dual major in economics and public policy and leadership.


Gabriella Cox

University Judiciary Committee Chair: 
Gabriella Cox (Batten ’21)

Cox, of Richmond, Virginia, seeks to improve internal and external relations and emphasize the committee’s role in the broader context of self-governance. But if students can’t return to or stay in Charlottesville, she also plans to tackle how to hold secure and confidential trials online and retrain members to adapt, says Cox, a double major in government and public policy and leadership.


Ellen Yates

Student Council President: 
Ellen Yates (Col ’21)

Boosting waning engagement between students and Student Council is an objective for Yates, a Charlottesville native. “Our goal is to focus on our organization being an ally to students, not to co-opt projects or try to represent their needs in the abstract,” says Yates, who is majoring in political and social thought.


Nik Popli

Cavalier Daily Editor-in-Chief: 
Nik Popli (Col ’21)

The native of Great Falls, Virginia, has led the paper during its coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic and is focused on keeping the UVA community informed and connected. He seeks to increase the diversity of the paper’s staff so that its coverage is “more reflective of the communities we cover,” says Popli, a media studies major with a double minor in politics and social entrepreneurship.


Mazzen Shalaby

Board of Visitors Student Member: 
Mazzen Shalaby (Col ’20, Batten ’21)

While working on a master’s degree in public policy, Shalaby’s to-do list includes forging stronger connections between students and University leaders and helping to navigate fallout from the covid-19 pandemic. “While it will undoubtedly be difficult, I hope we can use this as an opportunity to learn and grow, and emerge stronger as a community,” says Shalaby of Stafford, Virginia.


Ja’Mel Reed
Michael Bailey

Co-Chair of Resident Staff Program: 
Ja’Mel Reed (Col ’21)

Reed’s sights will be on helping Housing and Residence Life meet objectives from UVA’s strategic plan and supporting students as they return to Grounds. “I hope to aid in reestablishing a successful and inclusive housing community following the covid-19 pandemic and during the presidential 2020 election,” says Reed of Urbanna, Virginia, who is studying cognitive science and English.


Anna Winter

Co-Chair of Resident Staff Program: 
Anna Winter (Engr ’21)

A chemical engineering major from Houston, Winter is eager to provide students a stable and welcoming community as they readjust to college life during the covid-19 crisis and navigate the likely tensions of a presidential election. “We are choosing to look at these unique circumstances as opportunities for the program to adapt and grow despite the difficulties that may lie ahead,” she says.