Students welcome President Mortensen to Utah State

Utah State University President Brad L. Mortensen entered the TSC Juniper Lounge through a fluttering corridor of Spirit Squad pom-poms to meet with students and enjoy Aggie Ice Cream, just days before officially beginning his presidency on Nov. 10. 

A Utah State alumnus himself, Mortensen said he is excited to return and work with students. He said over the past few days on campus, he’s been struck by memories of his own university experience. 

“There have been so many times in just the last eight days now — just walking down a little corridor and having this flood of memories come back,” Mortensen said.  

He explained these moments have had him reflect on the significance of his Utah State experience, how it helped him develop as a person and how he carries his time at USU with him through life. 

“I really can personalize how impactful the educational experience is here at Utah State, and I want to make sure that we’re living up to that responsibility for the students who are here today,” Mortensen said. 

Eric Sommer, a senior in math education, is excited to see a former Aggie as president of the university. He hopes Mortensen’s ties to USU give him a deeper understanding of the community and the university. 

“It’s really cool to have someone who has the values of Cache Valley here and who understands Utah as a whole,” Sommer said. “Our university represents more than just Cache County. It’s a statewide university, so it’s really cool that he’s able to bring that state pride.” 

Sommer also hopes Mortensen’s ties to Weber State University help to create unity with other universities throughout Utah. 

Mortensen said he’s excited about the opportunities for students on the Logan campus.  

“There are a lot of great things happening here and with the graduate programs and research,” Mortensen said. “I really want to get out and understand what the opportunities are for the future so that we can help elevate that.” 

He also emphasized the importance of campuses throughout the state.  

“I am super excited to get out to all the statewide programs. They have such a unique role in helping to meet students who maybe don’t have the chance to come to Logan campus or have specific needs there, and I just want to get out and let them know that we see them,” Mortensen said. “They’re a huge part of the Aggie family, and we want to make sure that they can be just as successful all across the state.” 

Lily Couch and Gabe Cortez work directly under the president of the university as ambassadors and are the face of USU students to donors and leaders. Cortez is also a part of the Government Relations Council.  

“We’ve surveyed students, and one thing that the majority of students want to see is more higher-level university officials, like the president or deans or Board of Trustees, mingling and getting to know students,” Cortez said. 

He said with about 20,000 students on campus, this can be hard to achieve, but he believes Mortensen will prioritize connecting with the study body. 

“The fact that before he even met with other higher members, he wanted to speak with students first here at this event sends a big message of how I think his years here will go as president,” Cortez said. 

Cortez said he is impressed by Mortensen’s previous work at Weber State. He appreciates his strong personal presence, adding that his leadership abilities go beyond charisma. He believes Mortensen really knows how to lead a university: by involving students and making sure their needs are met. 

 “I think he’s exactly what we need right now,” Cortez said. 

Couch said she was also excited to hear Mortensen named as the new president. 

“I’ve only heard great things about him. I’ve heard he’s a president of the people. He really cares about the students and cares about what he’s doing,” Couch said. 

Mortensen hopes to continue working closely with students at Utah State to ensure their voices are heard. During his time at Weber State, Mortensen said he formally met at least once a month with student government leaders and other student representatives. 

“I kind of formed a group at Weber State of students who I would meet with at least monthly formally and then in a lot of other settings just to really break down the wall so that they know they can approach me about anything. That’s one thing I’m proud of that we did at Weber and really hope to replicate here, but we don’t need to recreate the wheel if those processes are already in place,” Mortensen said.