For the second time in UTM history, a member of the UTM TISL delegation has been elected governor.
Jamie Arnett of Memphis, a Political Science and Communications senior, was elected to the post Nov. 16 in Nashville at the 44th General Assembly of TISL, the Tennessee Intercollegiate State Legislature.
Arnett is the first female from UTM to be elected governor and only the fourth female to win the post in TISL history. She also is the second UTM student to be elected governor, with a 39-year gap from the only other UTM student to become a TISL governor. Roy Herron won the post in 1974 and later served as a longtime state senator. Herron now chairs the Tennessee Democratic Party and one of his sons, John Herron, was a member of this year’s UTM delegation.
Before being nominated for governor, Arnett already held a position in TISL as the Secretary of State.
“TISL has been a giant learning experience for me. You don’t think you’re going to learn this much from something you participate in on a yearly basis. Serving on the Executive Council, you learn a lot and learn exactly what you want to do in life and what you do not want to do. This experience will definitely help aid me in deciding what I want to do in my future endeavors, especially throughout my career after I graduate,” Arnett said.
In her new role, Arnett has one particular goal in mind.
“I want a budget. Now we’re going to see if we can gain some information from INGA, which is the Intercollegiate National Governors Association and MIG, the Model Illinois Government, and South Carolina and how they do their budgets. We’ve kind of taken an example from them and kind of twisted it around, and we’re going to see if we can get us a budget,” Arnett said.
“We’re also going to try and get a new take on media with some different ideas.”
Arnett also explained that winning the post was a shock and that she never thought she would run for governor.
“There have been very few times in my life that I have felt this blessed and loved. TISL 44 was a week to remember! I am so honored to be able to serve as the 45th Governor of TISL. I am so proud of the work that EC 44 did. I love every one of you! Tomorrow starts a new week and a new beginning. Thanks everyone for making this so special,” Arnett posted on Facebook.
TISL is a mock legislative program that allows students to write, debate and pass legislation, and it is similar to the House and Senate of Tennessee.
Other students to be elected during the 44th General Assembly were Caleb Butler of Bethel University as Secretary of State, David Snapp as State Treasure and Brandon Chrisman as Speaker of State both at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, Olivia O’Brien of Sewanee: The University of the South as Speaker of Pro Tem of the Senate and Logan Brasher of Union University as Speaker of the House.
With a turn out of 22 UTM delegates attending the assembly, there was plenty of excitement and appreciation.
“TISL has completely altered the way I view Tennessee government. As a senator, I had the inspiring opportunity to debate bills and consider the well-being of Tennessee citizens. TISL has encouraged me to continue to serve UTM and to leave a positive mark on this truly amazing university, ” Elizabeth Sanders a Family and Consumer Science major said.
For more information about the UTM delegation, contact advisors Dr. Bryan Parsons at bparsons@utm.edu and Dr. Chris Baxter at cbaxter@utm.edu.
To find out more about TISL, go to TISLonline.org or like them on Facebook.com/TISLonline.
