NJCU Announces 2023-24 Student Government Association Executive Board

May 16, 2023
SGA Elections Announcement Graphic_v2_strandvision

JERSEY CITY, N.J. | New Jersey City University (NJCU)’s Student Government Association (SGA) has announced its Executive Board leadership for the 2023-24 academic year. The election results are historic in nature as all five executive board winners are women. 

Ruth Diegue ‘24
, a rising senior, has been elected as the SGA’s new student body president. Diegue, a Biology major from Orange, N.J. and a graduate of Orange High School, was previously elected the SGA’s Vice President of Public Relations and Marketing as a junior during the 2022-23 academic year. A sister of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., she was an invited guest of United States Vice President Kamala Harris at The White House on October 14, 2022 when she was one of 75 student leaders from colleges and universities across 33 states who convened in Washington, D.C. to discuss the fight to protect reproductive rights. NJCU was the only college or university from the state of New Jersey represented at the meeting in Washington. You can also hear her NJCU Story by clicking here.

"As the new SGA President, I would like to thank the students of NJCU because they are not just any students but my fellow Gothic Knights and friends,” said Diegue. “I am willing to put in the work and remain steadfast in my approach to stand up for them whenever they need me. It is truly an honor for this position to be bestowed on me and it wouldn't be possible without the passionate student body who bleeds green and gold."

The other four leadership roles will have newly-elected voices next year. Crystal Genthe ‘25 was selected as SGA Executive Vice President. Alejandra Martinez ‘24, the current voting member to the NJCU Board of Trustees, was elected Vice President of Internal Affairs. Valerie Egharevba ‘24 will be the Vice President of Finance & Administration, and Breanna Felix ‘24 was the choice for Vice President of Public Relations & Marketing.

Genthe will be a junior this fall. She resides in Jamesburg, N.J. and graduated from the East Brunswick Magnet School. She is majoring in Exercise Science with a minor in Biology. She was the runner up in the 2022-23 election for Vice President of Internal Affairs. Martinez is an English-Literature major from West New York, N.J. and Memorial High School. She is minoring in Latin American, Caribbean, and Latino Studies. Egharevba of Newark, N.J. and Weequahic High School, will be a senior Biology major, while Felix of East Orange, N.J. and the Cicely Tyson School of Performing & Fine Arts, will be a senior Illustration major.

Diegue added: "The new executive board will be governed by five independent, strong-willed, strategic, and devoted women — all of different backgrounds, stories, and lifestyles, but we all have one mission. We are not only making history but rewriting it! We will not back down from any challenge, and we are truly a force to be reckoned with. The future of NJCU is female."

The outgoing SGA Executive Board for 2022-23 includes two-term SGA President and former Board of Trustees student trustee Thyquel M. Halley, Marco De La Cruz (Executive Vice President), Darwin Garrido (Vice President of Finance and Administration), Alice Johnson (Vice President of Internal Affairs) and Ruth Diegue (SGA Vice of Public Relations and Marketing), who was elected president.

Additionally, five students were elected to the Student Activities Board, ​​Sydney Epps was the pick for Senior Class officer while Marina Iskandre was chosen as Sophomore Class officer.

To learn more about NJCU’s Student Government Association, visit: https://www.njcu.edu/student-life/student-activities-organizations/student-government-association

Full results of the election are listed below:

President:
Ruth Diegue [166 Votes]

Executive VP:
Crystal Genthe [155 Votes]

VP of Internal Affairs:
Alejandra Martinez [166 Votes]

VP of Finance:
Valerie Egharevba [127 Votes]

VP of Public Relations & Marketing:
Breanna Felix [112 Votes]

Student Activities Board:
Project Manager: Iris Gonzales [166 Votes]
Project Manager: Shahod Augustin [137 Votes]
Project Manager: Alice Johnson [136 Votes]
Project Manager: Foday Koroma [126 Votes]
Marketing Manager: Camila Salomon [113 Votes]

Senior Class Officer:
President: Sydney Epps [153 Votes]

Sophomore Class Officer:
President: Marina Iskandre [145 Votes]

About NJCU:
New Jersey City University is an institution of higher learning dedicated to the development of our students, our city, our communities, and our state. We are a game-changing force for our students and have been recognized as one of the top colleges in the nation improving their upward economic mobility. Whether enrolled in one of our undergraduate, graduate, or doctoral programs at our three locations, NJCU students have access to an affordable, diverse environment, and an exceptionally supportive faculty. This prepares them to go on to become the next generation of workers and leaders who improve their communities and the State of New Jersey.

www.NJCU.edu


Contact:
Ira Thor
, Associate Vice President for University Communications (interim) | ithor@njcu.edu | 201-200-3301