Erskine recognized at fall session of South Carolina Student Legislature

For the seventh time in the past 12 years, the Erskine College delegation to the South Carolina Student Legislature (SCSL) was named Best Small Delegation.

The SCSL fall session Oct. 16-17 was conducted online, and a number of Erskine College students joined the meeting, including senior Delaney Atkinson of Clinton; sophomore Tome Filkov of Lackawanna, N.Y.; senior Tanner Frye of Spartanburg; senior Jacob Maccallum of Lenoir, N.C.; junior Roberto Monzalvo of Batesburg; senior Brooke Weathers of Greenwood; and junior Caroline Woolard of Camden.

Erskine students took leadership roles during the session, with Woolard serving as lieutenant governor, Weathers serving as secretary of state, and Monzalvo serving as committee chair for Medical, Municipal, Transportation, and Public Administration.

All three bills introduced by members of the Erskine delegation passed. Atkinson, Erskine’s delegation chair, presented a bill to increase the accessibility of voter registration in South Carolina. Frye’s bill was designed to encourage discussion on the topics of race and gender by means of high school courses. Monzalvo introduced a bill to allow Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients to be eligible for occupational or professional licensure.

Monzalvo said each delegation met using Zoom, and a unicameral virtual session was held.

Marissa Niño, a staff member in the Student Development Office, serves as sponsor of Erskine’s South Carolina Student Legislature organization.