Chief Justice Travis Ford will officially resign from their position in the University of North Florida’s Student Government (SG) on Friday, stepping straight into the role of associate justice, according to their resignation letter sent to Spinnaker late Monday. 

In the letter, Ford explained that their role as a Resident Assistant at UNF conflicts with the SG role of chief justice due to hours issues with UNF Human Resources (HR). 

For now, Ford will stay on as an associate justice within SG’s Judicial Branch. 

Ford told Spinnaker that they hope to become deputy chief justice during a Judicial Branch meeting on Thursday. In the spring, they’d like to run for chief justice again while pursuing a master’s degree at UNF. 

Together, Ford and their court have “changed the stigma of the court” being the “red-haired step-child” to a court that is active within both SG and the campus community, they wrote. 

“It is with great pleasure to remove the idea of being a cabal in a smoke-filled room to this beacon of hope for members of the Student Body and Student Government to address their issues,” they wrote.

This achievement is something that Ford wrote that they take pride in.

“Whether it be in the face of adversity, dealing with bias targeting, or fighting against unethical and immoral practices, myself, and the members of the “Ford Court” have been instrumental in always doing what is right,” Ford wrote in the letter. 

Ford had a final message for SG which explained that the organization is for serving the students at any possible moment and how they must always side with the students. Specifically, Ford wrote that SG does not “serve the on-campus departments” nor the interests of the investors of UNF.

“If these organizations had the interests of the students at the forefront of their priorities, there would be no need for us to exist, nor would we see constant student issues arise regarding campus departments, resources, or otherwise,” they wrote.

They further explained that this does not mean these resources are not good, but there is more to be done. 

“I hope in the future, after my tenure in Student Government as a whole is complete, I can write more extensively on my account in SG, but I will save that for when I depart completely,” Ford concluded. 

Read Ford’s full resignation letter here.

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