Why did you decide to run for AUSA, and what is your role on the team?
I ran for executive vice president because I served as senator at large last year. So I thought I had good experience being part of the team and I knew how things worked very well. I wanted to carry that spirit into the next year.
As executive vice president, I am primarily in charge of the AUSA Senate. Senate does a lot of cool things, like make changes on campus, such as replacing the chalkboards with whiteboards in Chan Shun Hall, and they are building a prayer room in the Rec Center. Another role the vice president has is to help our president, Kyara Samuels, with any executive duties that she has.
What are your goals for the Senate this year?
My goal is to make positive changes on campus. Also, I want senators to feel like they are a family. To achieve that, I believe we need the executive team to feel like family first, because the executive team leads the Senate. I want us to feel like a family so that we can all be more engaged and dedicated to the projects that we're doing.
Can you talk about some of the unique challenges that you’ve faced this year because of COVID?
Because of social distancing, we cannot have in-person meetings. We have our meetings over Zoom, and while Zoom is good, it is a lot easier for everyone to be engaged during in-person meetings.
How does the average student get in contact with the Senate if they have ideas to share?
Senators represent their districts. If a student lives on Meier Hall Third East, they can contact the senator who represents that area and that senator will bring it to our Senate agenda. That way, every student has the opportunity to offer student suggestions to Senate.
Is there anything coming up this semester or next semester that people should look out for?
One of the projects is masks for vents. This came from a senator who was concerned because vents were all connected and germs can go from one room to another when someone is sick. So Senate started a project to help prevent the spread of COVID on campus.
Another thing is microphones for professors. Because of COVID, a lot of classes are going online, and sometimes because of the quality of the sound students can not really hear what professors are saying. The Senate decided to support students by providing the microphones for professors.
As we transition into next semester, reach out to your local senators for updates on upcoming and completed Senate projects.
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of Andrews University. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, Andrews University or the Seventh-day Adventist church.