By Batul Ather, BUPD 2021

In late August, I had the honor of being elected to the American Planning Association’s Student Representative Council as their Region IV  Representative. Words could not describe my excitement and eagerness to serve such a prestigious role. As a representative, I am tasked with organizing programs and conferences, communicating with various planning student organizations, and overall being a voice that is representative of my community. I will be representing planning students of Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota, and Missouri. As a Council, our primary goal is to keep students engaged with APA in the form of activities, webinars, newsletters, etc. My term officially begins in January 2020 and lasts two years.

In September, I had the opportunity to attend APA’s Policy and Advocacy Conference in Washington D.C. At the conference, I attended my leadership orientation and got to meet the other representatives serving on the Student Representative Council from each region. I was welcomed with open arms and felt inspired by the other representatives as I learned more about their backgrounds in planning. I also ran into quite a few Ball State alumni here and there. Chirp chirp!

Overall, I am forever indebted to my peers and mentors for giving me this opportunity and allowing me to immerse myself further into the world of planning. I hope to bring my unique, unparalleled perspective to the table and make my Midwesterners proud! I have high hopes for the road ahead as a student representative and am grateful to work for and with such wonderful people.