Nick Santulli: President of Student Government Association

Nick Santulli (first right) with SGA members at the state capitol
Photo courtesy of SGA

By Andrea Acevedo

With a single Ron Nirenberg for Mayor sticker on his left shoulder and a cheering crowd to his side, Nick Santali stood nearby, carefully reading the results of the San Antonio mayoral election. Santulli is no stranger to political rallies or gatherings.

When Santulli, junior political science major and president of Trinity’s SGA, isn’t registering people to vote or lobbying at the Texas state capitol, he is working to get Trinity students involved in their community.

He joined SGA in hopes of making greater impacts in his community and with the desire to see those changes make a visible difference. “I craved more direct action and results,” he said.

Students have felt the effects of Santulli’s work in the Trinity community. Sophomore political science major Madeline Kennedy has worked closely with Santulli. “Nick has helped me to find ways to get more involved in the Trinity community," she said. "From joining Trinity Progressives to talking to the administration, Nick has shown me that my voice and my actions can make a difference.”

However, it hasn’t all been easy. In April, SGA came under scrutiny from many active Greek life students as they faced the possibility of having their funding stripped. As the leader of SGA, Santulli had to face the criticism head on. In just one semester, he has had to learn how to look at criticism and make it constructive.

At the same time, he hopes that the Greek council controversy has made people notice the impact of SGA. “People realized SGA does have a role and authority in something that impacts their lives,” he said. 

Santulli hopes this will spur more people to participate in SGA and to pay attention to who is running for office.

SGA can also speak on behalf on students. “You can come to us with anything,” he notes. When SGA goes to lobby and meet government officials in Austin, they are there to represent the students at Trinity University. “By engaging with your SGA officials they can represent your views on a municipal, and state level.”

Political engagement has followed Nick throughout his life, who grew up in Little Rock, Arkansas. It was there that Nick was exposed to a variety of different viewpoints.

“Growing up an aware gay male in Arkansas made me want to get involved in social justice issues,” he said.

He also credits some of the shaping of his own political views to the observations of rampant discrimination he observed while in high school.

In Arkansas, Nick attended a variety of high schools including Little Rock Central, the historical site of the 1957 integration crisis, better known as the Little Rock Nine.

“If you don’t come out of that with a passion for civil rights, I think that’s kind of concerning,” he said.