Anna Nelson

Mike Steffens got two things from his freshmen football coach: a nickname that lasted him more than 10 years and a piece of lifelong advice.

“Get in there next time, Bubba,” the coach said after a play in football practice went wrong. And because Steffens was a 15-year-old boy with 15-year-old friends, the name stuck.

But it is the advice of “getting in there” that Steffens is taking literally today.

Steffens is a December 1999 graduate of UW-Eau Claire and a former student senator who never ran for student body president in his five years in student government.

Now, as a resident of Eau Claire, Steffens is running for City Council president. Steffens said his involvement with student government at the university played a big part in his decision to run for City Council president.

“I’ve always been very interested in what’s going on around me (in local government),” said Steffens, who now works as an associate business manager at Uniprise. “I wanted to be involved again.”

Working with a variety of people on Senate definitely added to his experience as a leader, he said.

“I learned to treat everyone the same,” Steffens said.

At the primaries on Feb. 20, Steffens will face Jane Tappen, a current City Council member, Howard White and Gerald Wilkie. Steffens, 25, said he sees being a young candidate as an advantage.

“A lot of people would say it’s a disadvantage,” he said, smiling. “But it hasn’t scared me away yet.”

Part of Steffen’s desire to be a leader comes from his regret of not running for student body president.

“It was something I really wanted to do, but never did,” Steffens said.

He said student issues are definitely close to him.

“In some ways I still feel like a student,” said Steffens, who has thoughts of getting his master’s degree. “I miss it.”

As a graduate who stayed in the Chippewa Valley, Steffens said, as president, he would work to bring in more companies and create more jobs. He said he wants students to realize there are good jobs in Eau Claire.

Students are a huge part of this town, Steffens said. “But I don’t want people to say I am just running for students,” he said. “I’m running for everyone.”

Steffens has another simple goal as president: be a good leader. He wants to have a council that works professionally together.

“I want to be a breath of fresh air,” Steffens said in reference to a recent controversy about current dynamics between City Council members.

“It’s possible to have good debate without becoming unprofessional,” he said.

James Hanke, director of the Student Senate Finance Commission, said he knows firsthand that Steffens can disagree with someone while still getting along with that person.

“A lot of times, we didn’t agree on things,” Hanke said. “But he still respected me.”