FUSA Vice President. Senate Chair. Class councils.
Besides the election for FUSA President, many other positions are open in the upcoming FUSA elections, which are taking place Tuesday, February 23.
Fairfield students will vote for FUSA President, FUSA Vice President, class senators, and members of each class council. The position of Chair of Senate is voted only by current members of the Senate.
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Vice President
In regards to the position for FUSA Vice President, Lauren Johnson ’11, the current FUSA Vice President, is running uncontested. According to FUSA President Jeff Seiser ’10, just because Johnson is running unopposed does not mean she has automatically won the position. Unopposed candidates can still lose to write-in votes.
“I am running for Vice President for a second year because I genuinely enjoy the role,” she said. “The Vice President position is a flexible one, and I was able to focus on things that really matter to me.”
According to Johnson, she decided not to run for President because she wanted to stay involved in other campus activities as well, such as the Community Service Alliance and study abroad this summer.
“The responsibilities I have as the Vice President are enjoyable – whether that be planning Fairfield Fridays, mentoring underclassmen on the FUSA SWAT Team, or being a sounding board for the President,” she said.
If she does get re-elected, Johnson has a list of goals she would like to accomplish.
“My hope for next year is to really build off the accomplishments of FUSA this year. Personally, I want to develop a defined way of holding people accountable within FUSA. Over the past year Jeff, the current cabinet, and I have worked to define the roles of FUSA officials and develop a fun, team atmosphere among them,” she said.
“The next step is instituting a clear way of holding officials accountable to these expectations.”
In addition, Johnson said she wants to continue the efforts of the Fairfield Fridays program as well as the FUSA SWAT (Student Working All Together) Team, which is the new program aimed at FUSA recruitment for underclassmen.
Senate and Chair of Senate
The race for the new Chair of Senate is between Greg Burke ‘12 and Rosie Mathis ‘11. The current Chair of Senate Frank Fioretti ‘10 said that the winner will have the opportunity to continue Senate in the direction he has worked on this year.
“A Senate Chair can aspire to make inroads on initiatives ranging from transportation to course evaluations,” he said. “However, their success will ultimately be determined in how they train and guide the senators.”
According to Fioretti, both are worthy candidates.
“I think both Rosie and Greg are capable of fulfilling the responsibilities of Senate Chair,” said Fioretti. “They both are dedicated to Senate and have been productive throughout their time as members of the team.”
Burke has been a senator for the past two years and served on the Senate Executive Board this past year. In addition, he is the co-chair of the Student Life Committee.
Mathis has been a member of FUSA’s General Committee in addition to her position as a senator for the class of 2011. As a senator, she has helped create a Web site and list of landlord contact information for the beaches.
Burke is excited at the prospect of Senate Chair and feels that he is well-prepared to take on the challenge. “If elected, I will have the privilege to serve my fellow students in a meaningful manner while I continue to grow as a leader and a member of our University Community.”
Although he did not elaborate on the vision of his plans, Burke said he has a “four-tier plan” he will enact if elected. The four tiers include representation of students, communication, building a Senate team, and administrative restructuring. He also said that he will build off of what Fioretti and former Senate Chair Dan Lamendola ‘09 have established in Senate already.
According to Burke, “If elected, I will have the privilege to serve my fellow students in a meaningful manner while I continue to grow as a leader and a member of our University Community.”
“My vision for Senate next year and my ability to begin acting on that vision immediately after being elected is what makes me the best candidate for Senate Chair,” continued Burke.
Mathis, on the other hand, said she will strive to bring realistic goals to the Senate. “Senate is about getting results. Realistic goals, efficiency, and proper Senate etiquette are things that will help Senate move FUSA in a better direction,” she said.
According to Mathis, she is the right candidate for the position because she not only has she done a lot of work with FUSA, but she has a passion for the work FUSA does.
“Senate is where things get done, although many people don’t really know that!” said Mathis.
“The Senate is truly the student voice, and it would be my pleasure to be able to facilitate the senators and get the student’s voices heard.”
The current Senate will vote on the new Chair of Senate at the Senate meeting on Feb 21, according to Seiser. The future Senate members, though, are voted for by the student body. Eight Senate positions are available for each class; eleven students are running for the class of 2013, eleven for 2012, and four for 2011.
Class Council
For each class council, positions of president, vice president, and treasurer are available. For the class of 2011, Mary DeSantis is running for president, Joe Mercadante for vice president, and there is no one running for treasurer, allowing for someone to be written in.
Class of 2012 has Charlie Knights running for president, Jenna Allegretto for vice president, and Faolain Barrett for treasurer. For the class of 2011, Alexander Baillargeon, Daniel Bruno and Sarah Joseph are the presidential candidates, Danielle Young is running for vice president, and Deirdre Forrest and Matthew Boley are in the running for treasurer.
FUSA members hope that the student body will come out to vote for the various elections. When asked about the upcoming elections, Fioretti said, “I think it’ll be a great one and hope that students come out to witness it take place firsthand!”
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