Platform

About Me

I’m a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences studying Applied Mathematics. My hometown is Dallas, TX. Outside of frequently crying over my math homework, I serve as the Deputy Director of Policy for the Student Advocacy Center (SAC) and as an undergraduate representative to the university-sponsored Sexual Assault Working Group (SAWG). I have previously been an EmpowerAU facilitator and served on the Financial Aid Working Group under former-President Sasha Gilthorpe.

Why I’m Running

During my (almost) two years at American, I’ve seen a lot of University and student leaders fail to act with students’ best interest in mind. Being a student leader is difficult, time consuming work — but when done well, has the potential to dramatically improve our college experience.

I believe that student leaders need to listen to the students that they serve. I believe that strong financial management and HR services are critical to any organization’s success. I know that students want their voices heard, that they want their money spent effectively, and they demand the best from our student leaders. I am running, because I hope that you will help me build an organization that represents the best of what we can be.

University Budget

This year isn’t a budget year, but that doesn’t mean it’s time to sit back.

The University Budget Committee sets a budget every two years. They just concluded the process for the 2017–18 and 2018–19 school years, and the result isn’t great. Students were told there would be two consecutive 4% increases in the cost of tuition. But over 80% of students voted in favor of a tuition freeze in the spring of 2016, and the Board of Trustees responded by implementing the most significant tuition hikes in recent history.

That’s why, as Comptroller, I’ll commit to using the off-year to organize, prepare, and connect with students and administrators. We have almost two years to effectively plan and strategize for the next budget-making process.

But the next budget meeting shouldn’t be the first time administrators hear from students.

We can’t change the 4% tuition cost increases, but we can hold administrators to higher standards of accountability and transparency. Asking where our money is going and expecting tangible results from tuition hikes is one of my main priorities.

Over 1/4th of the University budget is allocated to “Supplies and Other.” The Board offered no reason as to why the tuition increases are necessary, other than that balancing the budget was a priority. They did not provide any details in regards to increased student services as a result of such increases.

As Comptroller, I plan to hold the Board accountable for these tuition hikes during this off-year.

The Budget Committee failed to engage with students during this budget cycle. Other than one sparsely attended AUSG-sponsored town hall, the Board didn’t host a single community event about the university budget. Board and Budget Committee members should be communicating with the AU community, hearing input from students, and answering simple questions about where our tuition dollars are going.

Before the first Board meeting of the 2017–18 school year, I plan to meet with students and student organizations to develop a unified list of demands in response to the tuition increases. If the Board chooses not to engage with students, I believe it’s important that I serve as the voice for the AU student body in the boardroom. Among my priorities for this list are proportional financial aid increases, staff increases in the Counseling Center, a full-time psychiatrist in the Health Center, personalized financial aid counselors, dedicated student space, additional Title IX Office staff, and more faculty for increased course offerings and research opportunities for students.

Beyond all of these, I’m most interested in hearing from you and relaying your thoughts, comments, concerns, and questions to the Board.

Student Government Budget

We need to expand transparency beyond the minimum requirements for the job.

Your Comptroller manages hundreds of thousands of dollars of your student activity funds every year. Your $88.50 each semester funds all of AUSG’s operating budget — from KPU speakers, to SUB concerts, to eboard/director stipends, and Founder’s Day Ball. I think you should know where your money is going. The current budget transparency page on the AUSG website hasn’t been updated since October 2016.

As Comptroller, I won’t just pledge to regularly update the SG website on funding allocations, I’ll make it more accessible for you to provide feedback. You will have the ability to monitor your money, and to let us know when you don’t think it’s being used wisely. I plan on publishing a monthly column in The Eagle with line-by-line financial disclosures, holding a monthly meeting to answer all of your questions about how we’re spending your money, and a monthly video presenting all of the numbers. I’m 100% committed to accessible transparency.

We should increase funding for the Academic Access Fund.

The Academic Access Fund is a Student Government sponsored program instituted to help pay for any out-of-class costs, like play tickets or art supplies. Every student should have the ability to reach their full potential in their classes, instead of worrying about not achieving a grade because they may not have the money to purchase these requirements. While the Academic Access Fund is currently being utilized on a trial basis with only $150 available for use, as your comptroller, I’ll push for it to become a permanent fixture of AUSG’s budget — and I will dramatically increase the funding.

SG should grant students greater input in what their student activity fee dollars are spent on.

Because Student Government is entirely funded by your student activity fees, every year when we allocate the budget to different SG departments, you should have a say in how that money is divvied up. The Comptroller is required to release a proposed budget two weeks in advance of the Senate Finance Committee hearing on the budget. Further, the Finance Committee is allowed to hold a public hearing before the budget goes before the full Senate for approval. But this system is just the bare minimum of student input. One of my first acts after assuming office will be signing an executive order encouraging the Senate to pass a bill requiring that no budget, stipend, or money-bearing initiative be passed without first inviting student feedback about it.

We will expand access for student organizations to funding assistance from SG.

This year, only a handful of student organizations have requested co-sponsorships or other funding from SG. There are thousands of dollars allocated for assisting clubs and other student orgs, and requests are rarely approved, or even submitted. As Comptroller, I’m committed to ensuring students have access to these funds. First, I plan to increase publicity and accessibility for co-sponsorships; organizations can’t request money if they don’t know about it. Second, I will increase funding for co-sponsorships and the travel subsidies when proposing a budget to the Senate. Finally, beyond increasing funds and access to them, I hope to serve as a resource for funds available outside of SG. There are an abundance of funding opportunities for campus organizations (e.g., Student Activities Programming Council, CDI, the Eagle Endowment, cross-club collaborations within AUCC, academic departments). If elected, I’ll ensure that clubs are aware of these funding sources and that they have access to them.

We will encourage partnerships between campus organizations and SG.

The SG President’s cabinet has historically included directors focused on a range of student issues, from community service and club sports to sexual assault awareness and prevention and academic affairs. Further, the SG Secretary’s cabinet includes video producers, graphic design specialists, and social media gurus. Finally, the SG Vice President’s cabinet is filled with event planners and coordinators. As Comptroller, in addition to serving as the point person for clubs to seek out funding assistance from SG, I’ll connect organizations that seek out funding/co-sponsorships to other SG members that can help with their philanthropy efforts, club sports games, speakers they’re bringing to campus, Sexual Assault Awareness Month events, and all of the other wonderful ideas our campus organizations have to offer.

I will make myself available and accessible.

It’s a lot to expect of students to find a tiny office on the second floor of MGC to talk to a student that may not even be there. SG executives are required to hold office hours, but I don’t think that’s enough to adequately serve students. If elected, I’ll commit to ensuring my office hours are consistent, publicized, and accessible. But beyond that, I’ll engage with AU students in regular town halls and events sponsored by SG, and do my part in engaging with student organizations on their home turf. I’ll arrange meetings with club leaders, attend Greek chapter meetings, and ensure that all campus organizations have the ability to engage with me/AUSG.

Internal Student Government Human Resources

I will require student government officials to be inclusive and supportive when it comes to gender/sexual identity, race, and sexual assault.

Over a year ago, the Undergraduate Senate passed a bill requiring all Student Government members to undergo diversity and inclusion training. Unfortunately, this hasn’t been enforced/implemented, and the curriculum hasn’t been written yet. If elected, I’ll work with student leaders and organizations (e.g., SASV, multicultural organizations, Queers and Allies, CDI) and University officials to develop comprehensive curricula that ensures SG meetings, events, debates over bills, recruitment strategies, and general dialogue is inclusive for students from all racial, gender, sexual, disability, and income statuses and identities.

Beyond this, I’d like to invite the Center for Diversity and Inclusion and PEERS/The Wellness Center to retreats hosted by Student Activities each semester for Student Government members for continuing education opportunities. Teaching student leaders to be inclusive and aware of others’ backgrounds, identities, and traumas isn’t something that can be done in an afternoon. It’s important that this conversation continues throughout the school year and that it influences recruitment/membership, Senate bills, programming, working groups and the advocacy work of executive directors, communications strategies, and all other facets of SG work. I’d like to also offer monthly teach-ins for SG members (and the broader campus community), because we can all always stand to learn a little more from and for each other.

We will giving students a way to report instances of unprofessional behavior on the part of members of SG.

A few Comptrollers back, there existed an HR complaint form for members of SG to file reports of misconduct against other members of SG. In the last two years at American, I’ve seen, sometimes first-hand, far too many instances of student leaders being less than kind to each other. As a member of Student Government during almost my entire time at AU, I’ve been on the receiving end of some of that mistreatment from peers and execs, and I’ve seen friends leave SG (and even AU) entirely because of the harmfulness of some SG members. And it’s unacceptable.

Not only am I committed to bringing back this form for interpersonal conflicts between members of Student Government, but insofar as SG members exist to serve their fellow students and University community, I’d like to make the form available for all students to submit such instances.