The news may be full of apathetic young people, but that’s not true at Dana. Just one example is Student Senate President Anthony Metcalf ’04 of Douds, Iowa.

“From the time Anthony arrived on this campus, he has done an excellent job in inspiring others to get involved,” said Chris Jebsen, dean of students.

Metcalf has been behind a renaissance of the Student Senate. Since his election as a representative his sophomore year, Metcalf has pushed for the Senate to do more and be more visible to Dana’s students.

“It’s very good for me to have been in the Senate at different levels,” he said. “My sophomore year was a major rebuilding point, and most of the work was done by the executive staff. In my junior year, we had more responsibility, but the Senate was not as active as I would have liked. As president, I’ve tried to put responsibility on the individual senators to do the work of the Senate.”

The results have been an increase in student input on everything from parking issues to the food served in the Dining Hall. This year the Senate has put more TVs and new carpet in the residence halls and raised money to upgrade computer labs.

“The Senate this year has been the most active that I’ve seen in my four years,” Metcalf said.

Providing students with leadership opportunities is something Dana is uniquely qualified to do as a small college dedicated to nurturing each individual student.

“Students learn a lot about leadership through active participation in clubs, organizations and activities,” Jebsen said. “In addition to serving as president of Student Senate, Anthony has served in major leadership roles in Student Activities and Residence Life. In these positions, he has modeled behavior that encourages others to pursue leadership opportunities.”

Metcalf is planning on being a role model for life. As a chemistry and chemistry for secondary education major, there’s a good chance he’ll end up in the classroom.

“For three years Anthony has tutored students in General Chemistry,” said Dr. Therese Michels, associate professor of chemistry. “His contributions outside the classroom are as stellar as his contributions in the classroom.”