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The three slates vying for executive board positions in Boston University’s Student Government officially kicked off their campaigns Monday with a meet-and-greet opportunity and reception to interact with the student body.
BUtiful Dreamers, TeamBU and True BU, the slates running for SG e-board for the 2015-16 academic year, gathered in the George Sherman Union Link Monday afternoon to interact with students and hand out snacks, fliers and information about their campaign. In the evening, the slates presented their platforms at a reception in the GSU Back Court.
Spencer Hilton, chairman of the Student Election Commission, said these initial events, which occur before voting begins on March 30, are planned to increase election week awareness and voting participation.
“The goal is to get as many people to vote as possible,” said Hilton, a junior in the School of Management. “Get people aware that elections are happening and that you can’t quite vote yet … but to be on the look out.”
Each slate is comprised of four students running for the positions of president, executive vice president, vice president of internal affairs and vice president of finance. Voters are allowed to choose candidates from any of the slates for e-board positions.
The BUtiful Dreamers slate includes Nicole Simons, Barron Roth, Noah McAskill and Joshua Lee. TeamBU, another slate, is comprised of Austin Kruger, Matt Sgrignari, Tim Geraghty and Gabriela Medeiros. True BU slate members running for office are Andrew Cho, Melesilika Finau, Marwa Sayed and Kimberly Barzola.
BUtiful Dreamers’ aim is to enhance BU’s social atmosphere through transparency within student government and to build a stronger communication foundation through the use of social media, Simons said in her speech.
“We want people to be really aware of us on campus and to know where to reach us,” said Simons, a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences, in her speech. “It all starts with a conversation.”
Social media provides an opportunity for SG to better listen to and communicate with the BU student body, Simons said.
TeamBU, Kruger said in his speech, aspires to unite the BU community and make the campus community tighter by “unlocking” the potential of the student body.
“We have the opportunity to solve problems by unlocking the potential of those around us,” said Kruger, a junior in SMG, in his speech. “We believe this counsel needs to be as diverse as the people we hope to represent and create a culture of collaboration which is missing.”
In her speech, Medeiros spoke about TeamBU’s proposed “Women That Do” initiative, a monthly meeting with female leaders from groups across campus.
“We believe that these meetings will be extremely beneficial because while our organizations may do different things, we all face the same challenges,” said Medeiros, a junior in SMG, in her speech.
Cho spoke in his speech about True BU’s mission to enable the student body to find purpose and community within BU.
“I believe that student government can advocate for student groups, facilitate collaborative movements and bring the diverse community together for a legacy to come together,” said Cho, a junior in CAS.
Finau said in her speech she wants True BU to “empower you [students] to access all BU resources and make your passion come alive.”
“Student government should really be the voice of the students,” said Finau, a sophomore in CAS, in her speech. “We want to hear what you [students] think about BU.”
Several attendees who attended the Slate-Speech Reception said they would like to see new leadership that will work to address issues that are important to students.
Salma Yehia, a senior in CAS, said the three slates focused on similar issues Monday and should work on differentiating themselves during the campaign period.
“The only thing that’s really going to stand up is who has the most experience and who has the most dedication to become the E-board,” she said.
Danny Nieto, a sophomore in the College of Communication, said the reception was fairly productive in familiarizing the student body with SG and the upcoming election.
“This is like the hub of BU where all the students come, and I think having people around is raising people’s attention to this event,” he said.
Zoe Strassfield, a senior in CAS, said she hopes SG can help her with an issue her student group is facing.
“One of the clubs I’m in, we want to rent at the GSU in the fall for an event and we’re having a lot of trouble just organizing everything, so I was hoping that student governments can make it easier for clubs to rent,” she said.
The three slates will participate in a debate on Thursday at 7 p.m. in the Jacob Sleeper Auditorium. Voting for SG executive board positions will begin March 30 and conclude on April 6.
