The mission of Student Union is to create a vibrant campus community by: advocating for the needs and interests of undergraduate students, developing and implementing both innovative and traditional programs, and allocating the student activity fee to unique and engaging activities, programs, and initiatives.

It is the vision of Student Union to responsibly serve and empower every undergraduate student to be a force for change and improvement while fostering and preserving tradition at Washington University in St. Louis.

Student Union (SU) is Washington University's undergraduate student government. SU represents the student body in the administration's decision-making process, ensuring that students have a voice in the academic and social decisions which directly affect them. SU carries out three major activities: representing student interests, registering, funding, and supporting student groups, and planning campus-wide events. It is divided into three branches: the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches. Over 200 student groups on campus are registered SU groups, utilizing a large portion of the overall $2 million budget. SU also publishes Bearings, the unofficial student handbook.

Student Union was created in 1967-1968 when students were actively protesting the Vietnam War. The governing body, originally called the Student Assembly, allocated money to student groups through the Office of Student Activities. Students were unhappy with the restrictions on their funds and with the limited power they had to allocate money for activities. In the spring of 1968, Kevin Funabashi, an undergraduate student, proposed a new form of government that would utilize a student activity fee to fund student groups. Kevin was elected later that spring to the new governing body, Student Union.

With an original student activity fee of $25, Student Union began to allocate funds to student groups. In 1969, a new Constitution was ratified that covered pertinent topics of the day, such as setting up a bail fund for students who were jailed for protesting against the war. Concert performances by the Grateful Dead and Marvin Gaye helped to raise these funds.

During the 1970s, Student Union was a middle ground for coalitions and political parties on campus. Student Union committees were formed to tackle issues such as tuition increases. In 1979, Student Union established its permanent office in the garden level of the Women’s Building.

Student Union has grown and changed greatly in thirty-six years, but the purpose of the organization remains the same: to address issues that affect Washington University students and to allocate funding to student groups for programming that enriches campus life.

The Student Union, the representative undergraduate student body of Washington University in St. Louis, must, in all its pursuits, be motivated by the desires and needs of Washington University in St. Louis undergraduate students.