Student Government Association President-Elect highlights community service and improving student-led clubs as key campaign initiatives

  Senior Michael Viermann was elected as UMKC SGA President for the 2026-27 school year, running on campaign promises that value community service and improving campus life. Viermann is on the pre-med track, pursuing degrees in science and chemistry.

  Viermann is excited to bring easier access to community service to the UMKC community. His leadership experience in the Breakfast Club showed him how few volunteering opportunities there were for students through UMKC.

  “We are big on volunteering, specifically about food scarcity related issues. We volunteer at soup kitchens and food pantries. A big thing for me is I’m looking to expand volunteering at UMKC.”

  Part of his plan to achieve that involves overhauling Roo Serve, a club started by student Brock Johnson last year. Johnson based the club off of Y Serve at BYU, his previous institution.

  Viermann is working with Todd Wells, Dean of Student Affairs, to change Roo Serve’s status from a Recognized Student Organization (RSO) to a university-funded, student-led organization like the Union Programming Board. 

  “The last thing we want is for us to promote volunteering and then it all fizzle out after we leave UMKC,” Viermann said. “Todd and everyone are committed to having this volunteering council be a long-standing part of UMKC and what it means to attend.”

  The president-elect expressed concerns over the structure of student-led clubs’ funding, saying larger groups deserve the most.

  “They have more of an impact on student life; therefore, they should receive more funding,” Viermann said.

  He also aims to change the overall club hierarchy on campus, with councils overseeing a category of smaller clubs.

  “Let’s say we have a sports council of some sort. You can have all the smaller sports clubs that are like volleyball and pickleball, cornhole, all those smaller sports activities,” Viermann said.

  The deadline to file new SGA legislation is April 13, and Viermann won’t be sworn in until the beginning of May. Students won’t see these changes until they start being implemented in the fall, aiming for a complete transition by next spring.

  Viermann hopes to work with the school to encourage more transparency in how they recycle items in the dining and residential life spaces. He also plans to ask for grants to get UMKC’s electric vehicle chargers repaired. 

  “There’s always more we can do, and I’m interested in following through on that,” Viermann said.

  According to Viermann, UMKC was previously “one of the number one schools in terms of their recycling commitment.”

  “Over the last decade, that has obviously become less and less of a priority for them,” Viermann said.

  Viermann encourages students to reach out to him and his team if they have any questions, concerns or ideas. He emphasized the importance of communication between SGA and the student body.

  “In terms of driving engagement… we need to hear from students to know how we can better serve students.”

  Viermann won the SGA election with 765 votes, 56.84% of the 1,346 votes cast.

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