Joseph Ham and Joseph Pellar were elected as the president and vice-president at the AUSA Senate elections last week. They and other elected senators will sit on the Senate during the 2007-8 academic year.
“The most rewarding aspect of the position is the impact I know I can make on this university. It’s a magnificent institution, and I am excited to help make it better for everyone,” said Ham, a junior business major.
“The first thing we have already done was work with the Office of Campus Activities to facilitate the Student Leadership Training Conference (SLTC) and have a roundtable with leaders of student organizations, discussing issues that it is facing and how the AUSA Senate can better address those issues. The leaders of these groups work tremendously hard and the easier we can make their jobs, the more successful they can be become,” said Ham.
“In addition to the SLTC, we plan to update various areas of Driscoll with the available funds, including new student organization workstations with computers and printers in the Student Organization workspace. In addition, we are going to buy A/V equipment for student organizations to use in the Driscoll Center for free. Finally, we want to liven up the existing spaces in Driscoll to make it more of a central place for students to congregate,” said Ham.
“I want students to feel comfortable coming to me with questions, comments, or concerns and also know that they will see results,” added Ham.
Freshmen Javier Ogaz and Joel Portman were elected as on-campus senators.
“AsB on-campusB senator,B IB planB onB beginningB discussionsB thisB yearB onB manyB of
theB itemsB inB myB platformB includingB moreB vegetarianB optionsB andB aB more streamlinedB studentB programmingB processB soB thatB changesB canB beB considered overB theB summerB andB implementedB forB theB upcomingB year,” said Portman.
“I’ve alreadyB heldB conversationsB withB representativesB ofB SodexhoB regardingB more vegetarianB optionsB andB betterB labelingB ofB mealB optionsB inB theB dining halls,” said Portman.
Christine Wright, a sophomore, was elected as one of the off-campus senators. Her platform called for a review of the funding that is given to student organizations, especially those organizations that promote diversity.
“IB alsoB wantB toB workB onB theB issuesB ofB parkingB forB off-campusB studentsB asB wellB asB placesB off-campusB studentsB canB goB toB socializeB toB makeB itB easierB toB beB anB offB campusB student,” said Wright.
The second off-campus senator elected was Kenneth Quan Phi, a freshman molecular biology major.
Other senators that were elected include Carlie Field and Claire Dixon as NSME/SECS senators, Kyle Mullica and Danielle Felder as senators representing the senior class, Jesse Reese and Antoine Perretta as junior class senators and Aaron Ting and Trisa Bui as sophomore class senators.
AHUM/SOCS senators are Regan Byrd and Tyler Gerk, and the Daniels College of Business senators are Troy Hashimoto and Grant Goerzen.
