Interboro grad named to Shippensburg council of trustees

Prospect Park resident Evan Redding was sworn in Thursday morning to his new position as a member of the Shippensburg University Council of Trustees.

Redding, 20, took his oath before Magisterial Judge Peter Tozer at Glenolden Borough Hall to join the university’s 11-member panel as a student representative with full voting privileges on issues concerning naming rights of campus buildings, university finances and personnel matters at the state-owned higher education institution.

Redding’s two-year term to council begins June 9.

Before his council appointment that was made official last week by Gov. Tom Wolf, Redding, an incoming junior majoring in finance, worked with the university’s stutive dent-run Activities Protive gram Board, the orientative tion team, held an executive position on Student Senate and is currently a resident assistant in one of the residence halls.

“I’ve had various opportunities of working with all types of students on campus … (and) as the only student to serve on council I get to represent all of those ideas,” Redding said about his soon-to-be trustee position. “I think it’s important that I have a background in working with different students so I can bring a wide spectrum of ideas to the council on behalf of the students.”

Redding honed his leadership skills at Interboro High School through its student council. A summer workshop he attended through the Pennsylvania Association of Student Councils helped him “leap forward in a leadership role” before heading to Shippensburg.

“I think those leadership skills that I learned allowed me to move up quickly through the ranks at the university and become a student leader and a voice for all students on campus,” he said.

In reference to his roots as an Interboro Buc, he admitted to not knowing how successful he could truly be while in high school, let alone becoming a future member of a university board of trustees. He said he had to realize what was inside him and get comfortable setting goals and achieving them.

“Students from Interboro have just as much potential to achieve at great places as anyone else in this world as long as they take advantage of the opportunities that are in front of them,” he said, later adding that you have to bounce back from any failures and grow from that.

Interboro Superintendent Bernadette Reiley was happy to hear about Redding’s successes and yet another “outstanding accomplishment” of district graduates.

“We know that we will be an asset to the Council of Trustees of Shippensburg University and represent Interboro well,” she said.