For the past 11 terms, I have been on campus interacting and working with the student body. I have been a member of the 2010 Class Council since my freshman fall, as well as worked two jobs and held leadership positions on the Nathan Smith Pre-Health Society.
But my activities and demonstrated leadership are not what will make me a good president. What will make me a good president is recognizing that I need to be a leader among leaders. I don't want to overstep my boundaries and misrepresent the student body by assuming I know best because I'm Student Assembly president, but I want to work with the students on campus, allowing them to represent themselves.
This is especially important with the introduction of the College's new president. No student body president can know everything, or can do it all on his or her own, and it is my hope to work together with the students, be the mouthpiece of the student body and allow campus leaders of student organizations to raise their voices and be heard.
It is extremely important for the student body to be able to represent themselves in this way, because a sole advocate can never know and do it all. One person cannot be error-proof (I have made many mistakes this week) and one person cannot do it all.
However, what I can do is promote advocacy over programming within the Assembly, increase collaboration between student groups and ensure fair representation of student wants and needs. Get more money into the Committee on Student Organizations, Club Sports and the Greek Leadership Council. Besides revising the Assembly, it is my goal to address Greek Life and other student issues.
In order to represent the student body and allow the Assembly to address student concerns, I have proposed the following reforms:
Student Liaisons:
I would like to write Student Liaison positions into the constitution of the Student Assembly. The five to six student liaisons will keep in contact with the presidents and leaders of all groups to learn what their membership would like advocated for both within their own organization and on a campus level. These needs will be addressed at the weekly General Assembly meeting, creating a way for the Assembly to reach out to the campus without requiring all of campus to come to a Student Assembly meeting. This will increase transparency and give students a voice.
Co-sponsorship:
As the constitution currently stands, the Assembly is not allowed to co-sponsor events unless they are a Student Assembly original idea. Allowing Student Assembly co-sponsorship allows for the entire student body's representation and advocacy for the event. The Assembly is the advocating body for the students, and must be able to work with other organizations in order to do so.
If the Assembly continues to be unable to co-sponsor, then students will continue to believe that they have a student governance body that does nothing for them.
Get Money For COSO, GLC, Club Sports:
I want to advocate for increasing the money provided by UFC to Club Sports, GLC and COSO. Even if this means cutting the Assembly budget by $10,000 to free up money for the UFC to give to these groups, I want to see this done.
Student Activity fees are untouched by budget cuts; this means that the money is there for student groups to have as long as the Assembly tightens its budget and gives more funding to organizations that need money. A Student Assembly internal budget cut would allow the UFC to redistribute this $10,000 to organizations such as COSO and the Club Sports Fund.
It is my hope that this would defray the out-of-pocket costs of members of various COSO organizations and club sports so that the student body can continue pursuing interests and activities in an affordable fashion.
Besides Student Assembly reforms, I am hoping to make the alcohol management policy more student-friendly by making it so that students only have to register an event with alcohol present if there are 80 people in attendance, rather than the currently proposed number 30. I am also looking into ways to make Good Samming more student-friendly so that students feel more comfortable getting their friends medical assistance when necessary.
It is my hope to care for the student body in every capacity. I plan on working harder than any president before me to be an effective leader by collaborating and communicating with other students.
Leading with other student leaders will ensure that any and all issues are addressed completely and handled in the best way possible. I am open to outside help, and I am driven and dedicated to making sure that the student body is represented to its fullest in this upcoming year.
