Come May 1, Student Body President Kevin Reilly will pass more than just his torch to Student Body President-elect Jordan Johnson.
With the transition in Student Government administrations comes a host of learned lessons from Reilly's sometimes-rocky year in office.
Reilly, a Gator Party member and former Student Senate president, did not return multiple phone calls over the past few days to reflect on his year, saying via text message Tuesday that he is in meetings in Washington, D.C., all day.
His reign as UF's chief executive officer included fulfilling some campaign processes, such as extending library hours through exam week, a measure continued from the previous administration, but it wasn't always so rosy.
Reilly's experiences did not go unnoted by Johnson, a Unite Party member and former Senate president himself, who said he doesn't intend to dwell on his predecessor's missteps.
"I want to do my own thing and leave my own legacy," he said.
One of Reilly's earliest tests came last May when Student Body Treasurer Paul Drayton came under fire by the Orange and Blue Party for fleeing Gainesville to take a summer internship with JP Morgan Chase in New York City. The decision resulted in impeachment proceedings, though Drayton kept his office.
Johnson explained that his running mates will be sticking by his side throughout the summer.
"One of the commitments we made when we took office was to make sacrifices," he said.
"I think that by asking to become a representative of the Student Body, you have to understand these sacrifices -- that this is a year-long commitment."
In January, Reilly faced his own impeachment proceedings by the Senate minority for his participation in last fall's private e-mail scandal, where Reilly and three other SG officials discussed via personal, non-SG e-mail accounts how to keep Orange and Blue Party members out of Senate committees during the summer session.
Six allegations were brought against Reilly, including failure to appoint an Image Chair in his executive cabinet among other e-mail-related charges, but he was not removed from office.
Johnson was hesitant to address Reilly's role in the scandal.
"It's not an easy question by any means," Johnson said. "And you know, when I think about the e-mail situation, I think that President Reilly was in the wrong."
However, Johnson said, it's easy to fall down a slippery slope once decisions are made without constituents -- fellow students -- in mind.
"It's tough these days," he said. "And you're a very busy person when you're Student Body president. You want your opinion to be heard when you think that what you have to say counts."
