Ryan Ring has been involved in student government ever since seventh grade, and when he arrived at UW-Eau Claire in 2015 he settled into committees on the student government association before working his way to a student senate position.
But now, Ring has a more prestigious seat — not through student
The Board of Regents — the governing body for the UW System — has 18 regents, 16 appointed by the governor. Two of those are students.
Ring first became interested the position when the board visited his campus last fall — in fact, Ring said UW System President Ray Cross gave him advice on how to apply for the position and pointed him to the application.
“It was honestly just like any other job I’ve applied for,” Ring said. A week after he received a call from the governor's office, they issued a press release announcing his appointment and his schedule quickly filled with meetings across the system.
In the months following, Ring has already begun developing a relationship with the UW System Student Representatives and their president, UW-Stevens Point student John Peralta.
According to Peralta,
Last year, UWSSR endorsed a list of students to fill the position and presented it to the governor's office — Ring’s name was not among them. Peralta said while the group was
Ring believes his position should continue to be appointed by the governor but still serve as a
“It's more of bringing the experiences of those students to the board,” Ring said. “And that's what I intend to do."
