Head of the class: Meet UVA’s 2025 student leaders
Honor Committee Chair:
Laura Howard (Col class of ’25)
A year after UVA students voted to approve a multi-sanction system for students who violate the Honor Code, Howard says the committee has work to do to ensure that the new system is efficient and fair, to address misconceptions and to earn back the trust of people alienated by it. “Everybody recognizes that we’re nowhere near done with our work,” she says. “The charge by the student body wasn’t just to create a system of new sanctions; it’s to keep making Honor a better system.”
University Judiciary Committee Chair:
Harper Jones (Col class of ’25)
Jones’ top priorities are to reckon with the Judiciary Committee’s recent spike in cases related to physical assault and threats to health and safety, and to ensure that students know how the UJC works and that it is a resource for them. Jones, of Greenwich, Connecticut, also plans to launch an endowment fund to support programs and provide the committee with financial flexibility. “A huge priority of mine is really kick-starting what we would call the UJC Endowment, connecting with our alums and really working to promote the mission of the UJC,” Jones says.
Student Council President:
Valentina Mendoza Gonzalez (Col class of ’25)
Past presidents have often moved up through council’s ranks to take the helm, but the Dumfries, Virginia, native took a different path. She first got involved in a student group that discussed social justice issues affecting the Latinx community before joining the council as director of coalition engagement as a second-year. “I think that my involvement outside of Student Council brought a lot of creativity to the role—a different perspective,” she says. With a focus on community, justice and transparency, her to-do list includes creating a program that introduces underrepresented high school students to diverse student life at UVA and building a resource hub for students to share their tips for success with one another.
Co-chair of Resident Staff Program:
Talia Dellarose (Col class of ’25)
When Dellarose came to Grounds in 2021 from Grindstone, Pennsylvania, she knew no one here. But the biology major fondly remembers her resident adviser, who helped students build enduring bonds, even amid pandemic-era difficulties. As co-chair, Dellarose is working to do the same for students living across UVA’s housing communities as she represents their various needs. “I have the opportunity to create that sense of belonging for everyone on Grounds and give everyone a community where they’re not just coming back to sleep, but it’s a place where they do feel at home and they do feel safe,” she says.
Co-chair of Resident Staff Program:
Sammy Finnegan (Col class of ’24)
Even going into college, Finnegan, of Richmond, Virginia, knew she wanted to be a resident adviser. As co-chair, Finnegan hopes to better connect organizations, such as student health or the multicultural center, with on-Grounds students and residence life staff to ensure that they have the resources and support they need. “We really want to bridge the gap and bring all of the University organizations together and ... be the connector from those organizations to the students,” Finnegan says.
Cavalier Daily Editor-in-Chief:
Nathan Onibudo (Col class of ’25)
The Springfield, Virginia, native got involved in the Cavalier Daily as a first-year, penning opinion columns about student self-governance. Last year he served as executive editor. Now he’s leading the paper with a focus on investing in its people. That includes bringing in more professional training, providing stipends to better compete with other publications, and considering how artificial intelligence might make the work of putting out the paper more manageable. “People do their best work,” he says, “when they see they’re valued in the space that they’re in.”
Board of Visitors Student Member:
Lisa Kopelnik (Col class of ’25)
This is the second major leadership role for Kopelnik of Oakland, California. Last year, Kopelnik was Judiciary Committee chair, a position that requires impartiality. On the BOV, Kopelnik is excited to use her voice to represent the student body. She’s eager to address topics such as the promotion of civil discourse and free expression, and issues of safety and mental health on and around Grounds. “The real responsibility of the board … is not just to address the now, it’s to build the future,” she says.