North Carolina State University - Agromeck Yearbook (Raleigh, NC)

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Features

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Mr. President, the reporter boomed, the Speaker said you don ' t give a damn about the issues facing the country. The well-modulated voice was that of ABC News ' chief White House correspondent Sam Donaldson during a student luncheon for President Reagan on State ' s campus in early September. The president pushed aside his steak sandwich, reached for his glass of iced te a and replied, I will evoke the rule that this is a photo opportunity and will not address myself to that. Still, Donaldson continued his badgering. Would the president veto sanctions to South Africa? How can I tell you when I don ' t know Reagan answered in a subdued voice. At that moment, State Student Body President Jay Everette rose to defend his constituency. Can I make a statement here? he asked, his voice showing obvious annoyance. This lunch was designed as a photo opportunity for us to be with the president and talk about student issues. We ' re glad members of the press are here, he continued. We would really appreciate it as young people if you would respect this opportunity that has been given to us. You have it all the time. We ' re having only about 20 minutes today. The photo opportunity continued. There were no more questions. Everette is truly a defender of student rights. his peers say. Infringe upon those rights, and he will probably tell you as he did Donaldson. I felt that our rights as students had been violated, Everette said. I felt it was my duty to stand up and say something. And I don ' t regret it. As a matter of fact, I would have felt more like a coward if I hadn ' t. One of Everette ' s strongest assets is his communication skills, his friends and associates say. Jay ' s a very good communicator, said Gary Mauney, Student Senate president and Everette ' s roommate. He has a way of getting things across to people. People get the sense that he is very sincere in what he ' s saying. Knowing him as well as I do, I can say he is very sincere. Sincere politition may seem contradictory to some, but Everette is devoted to serving the interests of all people, according to Mauney. And, Mauney says, Everette uses his highly respected position for self-improvement, not self-gain. He is a political thinker; there ' s no doubt about that, Mauney said. But there ' s a difference between a politician and a politico. A politician is very concerned about what he ' s doing, like Jay. A politico, on the other hand, thinks about what it ' s going to get him. Everette is not a flashy politician, but his grace and style create a lasting impression, according to Chancellor Bruce 20 Features

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Jay comes in and takes his place, elbow-to-elbow with those board members. His intellectual presence is felt. They listen and respect what he is saying. — Chancellor Bruce Poulton Poulton. r I ' ve watched him handle himself at several Board of Trustees meetings, Poulton said. He comes in and takes his place elbow-to-elbow with those board members. His intellectual presence is felt. They listen and they respect what he is saying. Since taking office the previous spring, Everette appeared to uphold his campaign promises. His campaign slogan was simple but pointed - to serve the interests of all students. Everette ' s work in increasing the number of minority senators illustrates his desire to alter these varying interests. Even before I was campaigning, I went out as a representative of Student Government and spoke to some international groups and black organizations about the importance of getting involved and running for office and how to go about it, Everette said. We still have a ways to go, but I ' m proud to say that this year in Student Government we have a larger representation than ever before. Everette, a senior from Wilmington, has participated in student government for eight years. He got his first taste of politics when he ran for student council president in the eighth grade. He entered the race at the encouragement of his sister, Jackie, who had held the office four years before. Everette won that election and carried the trust he earned from his classmates to Hoggard High the next year. He was elected president of his class each of his four years and served as president of the North Carolina Association of Student Councils as a senior. The fact that I could continuously win, that the students didn ' t get tired of me or think that I violated their trust makes me feel good. he said. Still, Everette did not label himself a leader. I don ' t think I was a leader as much as I was everyone ' s friend, he said. I didn ' t have trouble getting along with anyone, whether they were a different race or came from a different financial bracket. Because of that, I think I really gained everyone ' s respect. Everette said he first learned the meaning of respect in the fourth grade when a classmate, a black girl, died from an illness. I can remember going to her funeral because I was a friend of hers, he said. I think that helped me gain respect for other people. People would put their trust in me, and I didn ' t want to let them down. So then I started gaining a sense of responsibility to other people. Everette, whose father, Jack, graduated from State in 1963, chose his dad ' s alma mater after visiting most of North Carolina ' s major universities in search of a liberal arts degree. I liked the liberal arts programs here because they are smaller than other schools, and I think their quality is just as good, said Everette, who graduated in May in political science. 22 Features