SGA elections: Meet the candidates
Election season is underway for the Student Government Association, and during the SGA meeting on March 18 all of the candidates were introduced.
Four presidential candidates with their respective vice presidents and treasurers, as well as one associate justice candidate, spoke about their reasons for running for office and their goals if elected into office.
The candidates for the SGA 2024 election are as follows:
- Jozy Allen, Madison Gott and Christian Dunn: all juniors running for president, vice president and treasurer;
- Carolina Hernandez Ruiz, Aashka Barot and Akua Acheampong : a junior and two freshman running for president, vice president and treasurer;
- Aubrey Macintosh and Maggie Bauer: both sophomores running for president and vice president;
- Christian Toney, Tadiwanashe Mutasa and Trevor Muchabaya : senior, sophomore and freshman running for president, vice president and treasurer;
- Madison Coleman: a junior running for associate justice.
Allen: providing opportunities for students
Allen is a two-year SGA member and the president of Phi Alpha Delta's pre-law chapter. She said the goal of her campaign is unifying communities such as registered student organizations (RSOs) and Greek Life and making that the foundation that her cabinet operates upon.
“We’re struggling to create partnerships and build up communities,” she said. “We want to provide these opportunities to students. We want to get things done.”
Allen and her colleagues’ campaign has four pillars: Sustainability, community immersion, safety and equitable access.The group hopes to provide these things in various ways, such as more paid internship opportunities, expanding the availability of menstrual products on campus, clothing drives and temporary parking passes for students visiting the CMU Health clinic.
"Everyone deserves an equal chance to succeed," Gott said. “And sometimes that requires more effort.”
Hernandez Ruiz: support of student organizations and transparency of SGA
Hernandez Ruiz has been a member of SGA for three years, and this year she is running for SGA president alongside two other international students like herself.
Hernandez Ruiz said that the goal of her campaign is to give back to the community. She told the audience her story of her sophomore year financial struggle, in which her father lost his job and she was unable to pay for tuition. Within two weeks, people at CMU donated to her GoFundMe and were able to raise $2,800 towards a $3,500 deposit.
“It was very challenging,” she said. “And I learned through that experience that we’re stronger than we think.”
Her campaign group hopes to provide more support to students through collaborating with and uplifting RSOs, being more transparent about SGA activities and use of funding, expanding the buildings students can stay in during residence hall closings and extending the deadline for dropping classes.
"As SGA, we’re literally the representation of students on campus," Acheampong said. “If we cannot advocate for the students, if we cannot bring that change that they’ve brought us (to SGA) for, then we’re not really doing anything.”
Macintosh and Bauer: accessibility and community service opportunities
Macintosh was a member of the Constitution and Bylaws Committee this year and currently serves on the SGA House of Representatives. Due to her prior experience in management roles when she was 17 years old, she said she’d be great for the role of SGA President.
“I want you to know that if I’m passionate about something, I will make it happen,” she said. “And that’s why I’m here tonight.”
Macintosh said that the goal of her campaign is to promote involvement, accessibility and empowerment. She and Bauer hope to provide the university with more community service opportunities, address safety issues for those with disabilities and advocate for dietary needs in the dining halls.
"Having us elected is an opportunity for you to get your voice heard," Bauer said. “Any problems you have, we want to help and change them to make sure that your college experience and your life after college is the best that it could be.”
Toney: student graduation and success
Christian Toney is the current senator leader for SGA, a Student Budget Allocation Committee (SBAC) member and a general SGA member. He said he is running for a president's position to promote student success both during their college years and directly after graduating.
“I’ve seen far too many students struggling alone at Central in silence due to financial issues, mental health struggles or academic failure,” he said. “These students arrived on campus freshman year with a hope and vision of graduation. However many ended up leaving this campus in debt without a degree or with a degree but lacking employable experience.
"I believe it is the duty of Student Government Association leadership to address the entire student body’s concern and provide a voice to the administration so we can assess and develop a strategy that focuses on student graduation and career success."
Toney said he and his colleagues hope to provide students with student engagement, empowerment and sustainability. They hope to do this through improving SGA communication, provide further access to mental health resources and increasing the maximum emergency funds provided to a student from $3,000 to $6,000.
"What I want is the moment that you graduate, companies are already waiting for you," Muchabaya said. “You have to find a job that’s going to give you money… That’s why we are here for you.”
Coleman for Associate Justice
Coleman is a first year SGA member and formerly served on the Constitution and Bylaws Committee. She is the only person currently running for an associate justice position.
Associate justices are a new position part of the judicial branch, which was created by the Constitution and Bylaws Committee and announced at the Jan. 29 SGA meeting. The justices will have the ability to hold hearings involving the possible removal or impeachment of an SGA cabinet member.
Coleman said she is the only one running for the position since it is new and not well understood, but that she “accepts the challenge.”
“I think it will be a great way to expand my leadership abilities,” she said.
She hopes to further implement this branch into SGA’s current branches and value student voices in her position.
In Other Events
- March 25 is the deadline for submitting legislation according to SGA president Tyler Zimmerman and vice president Ryan Biller. Zimmerman said that legislation that anyone wants proposed before the year ends should submit it before 7 p.m. that day. Biller said the legislation would be viewed and edited within seven days after submission.
- The deadline for RSOs to request funding from SBAC is 11:59 p.m on March 25 Natalie Brant, the treasurer, said anyone who had questions could email her at brant1ns@cmich.edu.
- The Diversity Committee is still working on the CMU cookbook. The cookbook currently has six submissions are they are still accepting more via Google Forms. Aliza Punches, the communications coordinator for the committee, said they are hoping to have a variety of recipes from different backgrounds and cultures. She also said they hope to publish the book in the first week of May 2024.
- Two sustainability events are occurring in the coming weeks. The first is a tote bag making event being held at 3 p.m. to 6 p.m on March 22 in Wightman 116. Students can make a tote bag for $1 or by bringing in 20 plastic grocery bags. The second event is a campus clean up event happening at 5 p.m to 7 p.m on April 1 in Fabiano Garden, which students can RSVP for.
