About The Campaign

Vote Fowler-Lindgren on April 2, 2025!

As an Executive Ticket for the UPUA, the Fowler-Lindgren Administration will work to ensure the equitable representation of all students, and their key needs and requests, to the administration and entities of the university. Our advocacy and results-driven approach to policy benefits the student body while supporting our campaign pillars of campus impact, community empowerment, and accessibility. With expertise in administrative reforms for affordable education and sustainable operations, Mike and Ben offer a student government led under a future-thinking mission. Our administration upholds and exhibits the below values during our campaign and if elected:

  • Integrity-Driven Management 

  • Transparency with the Student Body

  • Quality, High-Impact Policy 

  • Student-Centered Advocacy

Vote Fowler-Lindgren for the future of the valley!

  • Presidential Candidate

    Hi everyone! My name is Mike Fowler, I’m currently a third-year student studying Political Science, with minors in Media Studies and Politics & Public Policy.

    Currently, I serve as the President of Lion Caucus – an organization that advocates on behalf of the University to the state and federal government – as well as the Vice Chair of the University Park Student Fee Board, supporting essential campus resources. Outside of student leadership, I work in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences as a Development and Alumni Relations Intern, and, of course, as a commissary worker in the Berkey Creamery.

    Through this involvement, I’ve grown a passion for advocacy and ensuring equal access to higher education, as well as making Penn State a supportive home for all who enter campus. For these reasons and many others, I’m proud to be running alongside Ben for Undergraduate Student Body President.

    • Hometown: Sparta, NJ

    • Major: Political Science 

    • Minors: Media Studies / Politics & Public Policy 

    • Colleges: Liberal Arts, Communications

    • Favorite Creamery Ice Cream Flavor: Grilled Stickies 

  • Vice Presidential Candidate

    My name is Ben Lindgren; I am a third-year Schreyer Honors student studying Community, Environment, and Development (CED) and International Politics with a minor in Spanish. It is an honor to be running alongside Mike to serve as your undergraduate student body vice president for the 2025-2026 academic year. 

    • Hometown: Pittsburgh, PA 

    • Majors: International Politics & Community, Environment, and Development (CED) 

    • Minor: Spanish 

    • Colleges: Liberal Arts, Agriculture, Schreyer Honors College 

    • Favorite Creamery Ice Cream Flavor: Monkey Business

  • Campaign Manager

    • Year: Junior

    • Hometown: Passaic, NJ

    • Major: Middle-Level Education, Mathematics

    • Campus Involvements: Latino Caucus, Presidential Leadership Academy, BLUEPrint, Multicultural Greek Council, Sigma Lambda Gamma National Sorority, Inc. 

    • Favorite Creamery Ice Cream Flavor: Alumni Swirl

  • Deputy Campaign Manger

    • Year: Sophomore

    • Hometown: Bowie, MD

    • Major: Criminology w/ Legal Studies Focus

    • Minor: Public Policy

    • Campus Involvements: UPUA Director of Diversity and Belonging, Kappa Alpha Pi, Black Caucus

    • Favorite Creamery Ice Cream Flavor: Wicked Caramel Sundae

  • Director of Public Relations

    • Year: Sophomore

    • Hometown: Greensburg, PA

    • Majors: Political Science and Sociology

    • Campus Involvements: Lion Caucus, THON, Kappa Alpha Pi

    • Favorite Creamery Ice Cream Flavor: Cookie Dough

  • Director of Merchandise

    • Year: Sophomore 

    • Hometown: Lima, Peru

    • Majors: Political Science, Economics 

    • Campus Involvements: UPUA Vice Chair of Justice and Equity, International Student Council, Latino Caucus

    • Favorite Creamery Ice Cream Flavor: Cookie Dough

Where I’m From

Growing up in Northern New Jersey, Penn State was never the projected path for me. My grew up as an Alumni of Notre Dame, and my dad a small engineering college in Manhattan, and it wasn’t until I was in high school that I started to see Penn State as an option for me.

When I was growing up, and continuing into today, my family has always been the most important thing in my life. My mom, Anne, my dad, Don, and my brothers Will and Doug have been some of my biggest resources and inspirations, and also some of my most staunch supporters. I always looked up to them not only in personal and professional successes, but also in how they operated in their everyday lives. My dad always ensured that he was putting the needs of others before himself, especially those who come from less fortunate backgrounds than him. He always saw everyone as equal, no matter who they were or what they were going through. Today, that’s where my passion for advocacy and equitable representation stems from. 

Growing up as an active member of the Boy Scouts of America, this selfless service was further ingrained. My family grew up with the ideals of Scouting – fellowship, cheerfulness, and service – as the same ones that steered our family, and I hope to continue with these essential ideals not only in my everyday life, but also as the President of the Undergraduate Student Body.

Mike’s UPUA Journey

  • 2022-2023: First-Year Council, First-Year Representative, Committee on Government and Community Relations, Committee on Campus Operations

  • 2023-2024: Associate Justice, Elections Commissioner

Since I began at Penn State in August of 2022, I felt a strong sense of passion and community within the Penn State student body. Immediately, I sought out ways to use the past experiences of advocacy that I’ve had in many past organizations and apply them to advocating for the student body. When I learned about the UPUA First Year Council, I knew this entity was one of the most impactful on campus. After applying and interviewing, I was not only asked to serve on the First Year Council but was also chosen to serve as First Year Representative in the 17th Assembly.

In this role throughout my first year at Penn State, I was able to serve on the Facilities (now Campus Operations) and Governmental Affairs (now Government and Community Relations) committees as a voting member, working to draft legislation to tactically better campus physical projects, as well as increase the student body’s relationship with those representatives and governmental entities that serve them. Additionally, through projects such as the PSU Votes debates, this committee worked to bolster the political dichotomy on Penn State’s campus.

After serving as First Year Representative, I shifted branches to serve as an Associate Justice in the 18th Assembly. That year, representation, through voting seats, in the UPUA Assembly expanded to identity caucuses such as MENA Caucus and Disability Alliance, in order to make the student government of University Park as inclusive and equitable as possible. Additionally, as an Associate, I worked to ensure fairness within the student government, including the execution of free and fair elections for the current Assembly.

Involvement

  • First Year

    • UPUA First Year Representative, Lion Caucus Vice Chair of Internal Outreach, THON Dancer Relations Committee, Berkey Creamery

  • Second Year

    • Lion Caucus Secretary, UPUA Associate Justice, Penn State Mock Trial Association, Berkey Creamery

    • Summer 2024: Development and Alumni Relations Intern - Earth and Mineral Sciences

  • Third Year

    • Lion Caucus President, DDAR Intern - EMS, University Park Fee Board Vice Chair, Liberal Arts Academic Integrity Committee, Health and Wellness Advisory Board, Civic Engagement Alliance, Berkey Creamery

Meaningful Advocacy and Service

  • State Appropriations

  • Pell Grant

  • Fee Board - Essential Services

  • Scouting America

Where I’m From

Growing up in the suburbs of Pittsburgh in a Penn State family greatly influenced my childhood passions and current experience here at Penn State. My parents, both Penn State alumni, always had PSU football games on TV during fall afternoons. Attending Blue-White games in State College in the spring, often involving a crew of family friends and neighbors, was a cornerstone of my childhood experience. Penn State is truly synonymous with my life and my family, and I will work to ensure that all students feel at home at this university if elected. 

My passion for sustainability and environmental policy also roots itself in my Pittsburgh experience. My grandfather, Pappy, grew up in a heavily polluted downtown in the 1940s and eventually worked for U.S. Steel in the city’s steel mills. His stories of Pittsburgh, and its evolution from a contaminated steel town to a renewed hub for technology and medicine, sparked my interest in sustainable development and effective environmental policy. Most of my childhood was spent outside, whether kayaking with my dad, biking along the city’s rivers, hiking in state parks, or gardening in my backyard; this also plays a major role in my interests today! I hope to work in environmental law or policy after graduating.

My Studies

My studies in International Politics and CED focus on environmental policy and its effects on community development at a local through global scale. My particular area of interest, food policy, explores the relationships between agricultural communities, corporations, and policymakers to ensure food access for all in a sustainable manner. This also concerns disproportionate food access to communities in need. 

My UPUA Journey

  • 2022-2023: First Year Council Member, At-Large Representative, Sustainability Department Liaison 

  • 2023-2024: Director of Food Justice, The Department of Environmental Sustainability 

  • 2024-2025: Executive Director of Sustainability 

Serving in the UPUA for the entirety of my undergraduate career has been a true honor. I couldn’t be more grateful for the amazing friends I have made alongside outstanding mentorship from past student leaders. I started as a first-year council member before being appointed as an at-large representative in the Spring of 2023. In the at-large representative role, I was a founding planner of the first annual Penn State Sustainability Summit. I also worked as a member of the Committee on Justice and Equity. I transitioned to the executive branch of the UPUA during my second year at Penn State, serving as the Director of Food Justice for the Sustainability Department. In this role, I gathered over 40 administrators, student leaders, and local through federal politicians as the head of the first-ever Penn State Farmer Partnership Summit focusing on sustainable food systems and farmer mental health. This key summit continues today through Penn State’s Extension service. For my third and current year at Penn State, I was appointed by undergraduate student body president Zion Sykes to serve as the 19th Assembly’s Executive Director of Sustainability. In this role, I sit on four different sustainability councils with university administrators as the student representative for Penn State’s sustainable development policies. In addition, I manage a department of three exceptional students, advise on all UPUA sustainability-related legislation, and assist with all UPUA-related sustainability initiatives. I am honored to serve as the UPUA’s expert on sustainability, and I will work to ensure that long-lasting change will be implemented in this space if elected.

Involvement

  • First-Year Student: UPUA, Penn State Student Farm, PSOC, McCourtney Institute for Democracy Undergraduate Researcher 

    • Summer of 2023: AmeriCorps Member, Penn State Sustainable Food Systems Program in State College 

  • Second-Year Student: UPUA, Kappa Alpha Pi Pre-Law Fraternity, Schreyer Honors Orientation Leader, Penn State Student Farm, UNESCO Undergraduate Fellow, Lion’s Pantry Intern 

    • Summer of 2024: Federal Agricultural Policy Intern, The National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) in Washington, DC 

  • Third-Year Student: UPUA, Resident Assistant (RA), Teaching Assistant (TA) for CED 102N: Problems in Sustainability and Climate Change 

  • Summer of 2025: Corporate Sustainability Intern, Whole Foods Market

Meaningful Advocacy and Service

My extracurricular and professional development at Penn State, primarily centered on direct engagement with students, has provided me with a unique perspective on the university’s operations and my peers’ needs. I strongly attribute my connections with Penn State’s food system to my involvement with the Penn State Student Farm during my first and second years at Penn State. My 500 hours of AmeriCorps national service in the summer of 2023 allowed me to directly engage with the Lion’s Pantry, the Student Farm, and the Office of Student Care and Advocacy in meaningful ways. I contributed to the development of a basic needs casework database applicable to all Commonwealth Campus students, developed the current Lion’s Pantry manual, and assisted with Student Farm community-focused programming. I continued my work at the Lion’s Pantry as an operations intern; I have gained expertise in the area of basic needs and food security on campus. I also take great pride in currently working as a Resident Assistant (RA) where I support students with the daily challenges they face while navigating college.

Ben’s Passion Project

Zero Waste Penn State: Enhanced University Waste Management Programming 

The UPUA’s “Zero Waste Penn State” initiative will focus on decreasing the university’s purchase and distribution of single-use packaging while enhancing recycling opportunities for students and staff across campus. The UPUA will work with the Office of Physical Plant (OPP) and and the Auxiliary and Business Services (ABS) Sustainability Team to identify key areas for improvement including: 

  • Providing individual, clearly labeled recycling bins for students in dorm rooms 

  • Providing dedicated recycling bins for Penn State football shakers at Beaver Stadium

  • Reducing single-use plastics at Dining market locations 

  • Promoting packaging alternatives for products across the university 

  • Work with EcoReps to expand recycling education programs to all university housing areas 

  • Explore new pathways with Tailgate Ambassadors to enhance tailgate recycling 

  • Working with prominent RSOs, including Lion Ambassadors, THON, SPA, Movin’ On, the IFC, and PanHel to incorporate waste reduction in their programming