Residence Halls Association Spokeswoman Sam Lengyel won the organization’s presidency last night.
In what turned out to be a close race, RHA spokeswoman Sam Lengyel was elected next year’s president of the organization last night.
Lengyel will face a full plate of initiatives next year, such as the opening of Oakland Hall, Northwoods Dining Hall, the ongoing Purple Line debate and hosting a national Residence Hall Association conference. At last night’s meeting, the junior dietetics major beat out Commons Senator Casey Anis though, who emphasized the importance of safety and constituency service during his campaign. While the vote was not officially disclosed to members, it was a “close” race, said elections chairperson Zohara Barth.
“I am excited because RHA has a lot of issues that it’s going to be involved in next year,” Lengyel said. “I’m excited for RHA to get into the details and voice the concerns of the students we represent.”
The president-elect, who has three years of RHA experience under her belt, said she will draw from this experience to help guide her presidency, but, she added, her leadership style will not mimic that of past leaders.
“I’ve been around for three years, I’ve seen three different presidencies,” Lengyel said. “I know what works and what doesn’t and what strategies to use as far as outreach goes and as far as empowering students goes, and I want to use those techniques and bring my own passion to the organization.”
In addition to doing work related to Oakland Hall and the Northwoods Diner, Lengyel also hopes to revisit the establishment of the Purple Line on the campus.
“I just know that it’s a very large long-term process,” she said. “I don’t want the RHA to let it slip by and not revisit by this year. I want to see progress being made since it’s drawing near.”
She also hopes to continue green initiatives like the Eat IN-itiative, which was established last year to encourage students to eat meals inside dining halls and to avoid using carryout containers. Lengyel sees sustainability as an important issue and one that keeps “popping up.”
Outgoing RHA President Josef Mensah, who said that passing up Samantha Lengyel for spokeswoman this year would have been the “biggest mistake of his year as RHA President,” was excited about her win.
“Sam is a big initiative type person,” Mensah said. “[She’s] perfect for the year they’re going into. She’s going to be able to see everything from a larger perspective but also know that nothing can fall through. She’s going to be very aware of the details of all the large initiatives coming in. She’s someone who will keep her eyes open for anything that will pop up.”
South Hill resident Taylor Cole beat out three other people for the vice president slot in what was one of the most competitive vice president elections in years, members said. Cole emphasized the importance of revisiting establishing a university Good Samaritan Policy, establishing more mixed-gender housing and the creation of an Ad-hoc sustainability committee.
korkut@umdbk.com
