Meet your arts senator – Nathan Scott

When Nathan Scott heard about the arts senator position his freshman year at Utah State University, he was immediately interested, and he ended up running as a write-in candidate his sophomore year. Though he wasn’t able to win the election that year, Scott— now a senior— currently serves as the senator for the Caine College of the Arts.

“I did it because I feel like the students I represent in my college need a representative who has a strong voice, who is willing to go up to bat for them, who is their advocate, who is a good liaison between them and the administration, who is able to voice their concerns and issues regardless of what they are,” Scott said. 

As the arts senator, Scott’s focus has been advocating for and prioritizing student’s mental health.

“The students in my college are known to have greater mental health needs than most other students on campus,” Scott said. “I am a huge advocate for mental health, and I know it’s an absolute need for the students of my college and the university.”

Scott has organized events and trainings for students at Caine College of the Arts focused on student well being, including an entire day of Arts Week dedicated to mental health. As a member of the fee committee board, he also supported proposals to hire a psychologist counselor at the Student Health and Wellness Center and to increase the stipend that interns at Counseling and Psychological Services receive, both of which passed.

“I think the primary priority a student senator should have is the students’ well being,” Scott said. “My goal for this semester specifically is to represent the students and advocate for them as best as possible.”

Scott holds weekly meetings with the Arts Council to discuss the needs of the students, as well as plan and run events for the college. Abbigayle Welch, president of the Arts Council, has been impressed by Scott’s ability to execute the council’s ideas. 

“Nathan’s ability to take the ideas of the council and put them into action is incredible. Our ideas were never compromised,” Welch said. “He has gone above and beyond to make sure that our talents and capabilities are being utilized and amplified.”

Welch also admires Scott’s passion for his work as senator. 

“Nathan is very passionate about the work that he does. He always has the betterment of the students in mind as he is planning, working with administration and executing events,” Welch said. “He has worked very hard to eliminate stigmas around mental illness by providing events and training for students at the college to utilize.”

In addition to his position on the student senate, Scott has also been an ambassador for Caine College of the Arts, the events coordinator for the Utah State University Music Therapy Student Association, a member of the president’s cabinet, a member of the Student Alumni Association and a member of USU’s Alpha Tau Omega fraternity. 

With a list like that, it’s no wonder that Scott’s ambition is a trait that many people in his life admire him for. 

Tiernan Thorley, Scott’s brother in Alpha Tau Omega, has been impressed at the effort Scott puts into every aspect of his life.

“Nathan truly challenges himself in everything that he does,” Thorley said. “Whether it be his education, his religion, or his fraternity and senate involvement, he commits completely and puts in the maximum effort. Like anyone, he has had plenty of opportunities to be lazy about the things that are important to him. But unlike many of us, he has never taken the easy road by putting anything less than 100% of his energy into what he is doing.” 

Thorley said Alpha Tau Omega recruited Scott because they knew he would be a great leader. 

“People like Nathan who come in and get passionate and work hard have helped us get back on our feet,” Thorley said. “He has been instrumental in turning our organization into something that other people want to be a part of.”

Scott’s father, Jeffrey Scott, also admires his son’s ambition.

“Nathan is relentless when he sets his mind to do something. He got up every morning at 5 a.m. to practice for basketball tryouts his sophomore year. He would practice every shot until it was second nature. One morning, not long before tryouts, he made 78 free throws in a row,” Jeffrey Scott said. “Nathan has done the same thing in pursuing his musical talents.”

Mr. Scott has seen his son continue to push himself in college, especially as srts senator.

“Each year of college Nathan has done more to challenge himself and be more involved. After doing well as a write-in candidate a couple of years ago for arts Senator, Nathan got going much earlier on the next year’s campaign and was elected and continues to serve as arts Senator. It hasn’t just been a title,” Jeffrey Scott said. “He really listens to the students in the college and does all in his power to address their concerns.”

Scott pushed himself out of his comfort zone many times this year, not only as a leader but as a performer. Scott performed at both Mr. USU and Aggie Voice.

“I’ve never really put myself out there before in front of so many people, but it was great,” Scott said. “One of my goals this year was to take risks because I want to be ambitious. I want to challenge myself, so I figured those events would be big risks for me. I wanted to expose myself as an artist and musician and a talent on campus.”

With a rigorous major and a hefty list of responsibilities, life can get pretty stressful for Scott. When he is overstressed, he makes sure his email inbox is empty and then turns to music.

“I obviously love music, so whenever I’m stressed, music is therapeutic,” Scott said. “I just sit down and jam on my guitar before I start homework or before I go back to responding to students’ concerns.”

Nathan Scott has always loved music, but he wasn’t always sure what he wanted to do with that passion. 

He began college as a vocal performance major, but he decided to make the switch to the music therapy program, a decision he described as a “no-brainer”.

“I love performing. If I could do it for the rest of my life, I would, but I’m wanting to do something a little bit more practical and something that gives back to people,” Scott said. ”I really loved the idea of being some type of counselor or therapist working in the psychological field.”

Scott plays both piano and guitar, but he considers his voice to be his primary instrument.

“Piano is my first instrument. I started lessons when I was about ten until I was about 16 or 17,” Scott said. “I started taking voice lessons and sort of made the switch because I couldn’t handle both while I was in high school. I’ve been playing guitar for about six or seven years.”

Outside of academics, Scott enjoys watching movies and playing basketball and tennis. He also enjoys playing pickleball with his dad and brother, with whom Scott swept the Education Week pickleball tournament last year.

—darcy.ritchie@aggiemail.usu.edu

@darcyrrose