I am running for SGA president because I love this university and I love the fact that student leaders, if they put their hearts into it, can have a big influence on the university. I’m proud to have stood up for student interests during the past three years, first as a legislator on the Student Government Association and more recently as president of the Off-Campus Student Association. I have worked hard to strengthen and create new traditions as a member of the Homecoming Committee and the Tradition Commission.
I believe there is a clear choice in this election, a choice between records and rhetoric. We can all stand up and promise revolutionary techniques to fight crime, lower tuition increase and make the student experience better. But that’s all rhetoric, and our student government has seen too much of that. I believe we need proven leadership on issues that matter, and that’s the leadership the Action party and I bring.
I led the fight for the 2006 Tuition Affordability Act, which kept our tuition from going up, helped push a report addressing our public safety needs through the University Senate, stood up to the Prince George’s County Police Department as it dismissed the notion of rising crime in College Park and fought the opening of Shuttle-UM to non-students. I also lobbied hard for student-friendly, cost-effective bills such as releasing detailed textbook information so we can get our books cheaper, requiring the state of Maryland to prioritize higher education in its budgets, and fought alongside university President Dan Mote as we urged the General Assembly to not cut the university’s budget for next year.
The SGA’s representation in Annapolis and its voice in College Park is at an all-time low, especially as the College Park City Council and the General Assembly moved ahead at full steam with legislation unfriendly toward students. It was only the activism of two students outside the SGA that spurred student leaders to fight a bill limiting affordable housing in the city.
Using the same tenacity with which I’ve fought for students for the past three years, I promise to fulfill our realistic campaign platform of finding a dedicated funding source for higher education and electing a student-friendly majority to the city council. We have already worked with and are ready to implement Pick-A-Prof at roughly 50 cents per student per year, which would come out of the SGA’s current $1.4 million budget.
In the end, we’re all about the same things, but it’s one thing to say what needs to be done and a different thing to talk about how we can get it done.
During the past few days, we have presented realistic plans for how we will accomplish our goals. Our platform was built from feedback we received from students. It provides solutions for problems we face with realistic ideas, not just wishes.
As SGA president, I will bring leadership that advocates for student interests through consensus building. I intend to capitalize on my close relationships with Gov. Martin O’Malley and in local government to advance student interests. I promise to use my experience of representing more than 16,000 students as president of the Off-Campus Student Association and my understanding of public policy to propose creative solutions that will make our campus better, safer and more affordable, and our SGA the representative body we deserve.
You deserve a student government that is visible and inclusive. I encourage you to take a look at our website, www.voteActionparty.com, and all of our candidates to learn more about how we plan on turning things around.
