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Show I DARIN MARK WATERS BIRD Bird and Waters vie for presidency Wednesday in the current ASSUSC offer Both candidates and their parties BY REBECCA WINSOR Students should have a stronger voice in state political issues, says Darin Bird, presidential candidate for The Edge party. Bird plans to achieve his goal for greater student representation by building on a strong current student administration. "Most of the president's job is political. Monica (Moe) is a politically-minde- d president, and she's made some real progress on the Library and fitness center. We can't afford to skip a beat and lose ground on what she's started," he says. Currently, the student administration is making important contacts and developing influence with the state legislators. Bird says the college can't afford to lose the connections it has built. Because of SUSC's location in the state, legislators tend to overlook the college, says Bird. He believes that student leaders must be particularly active to make up for the distance. "Utah State and the University of Utah are right there. We need to make sure we attend state meetings so we aren't overlooked," says strong leadership experience Bird. To further strengthen SUSC's position with the state legislature, Bird would like to see more students become registered voters. "Next year is an election year and we have the opportunity to put a lot of pressure on candidates. But, we need to get a total campus effort not just student officers. We have the possibility of registering about 3,000 votes. Then, next January, we can call in on promises," Bird says. Bird adds that the student body needs officers with strong lobbying experience. Bird, currently ASSUSC political affairs representative, served as an intern at the Utah Legislature for two years. He is currently a member of the Utah Student Lobbyist Assocation. This year he has attended the legislative sessions, Board of Regents' and Institutional Council meetings. "In talking with state legislators, I've found they are more impressed by student input when they voice specific concerns with concrete evidence than just the (college) administrators voicing (continued on page 3) BY NICOLE BONHAM A student leader must be aware of the issues facing higher education and the impact they will have on students, says New View presidential candidate Mark Waters. Waters stresses student involvement. He says student government should present issues in such a manner so that SUSC students have a complete understanding of decisions concerning higher education and the impacts to be felt by the students. To increase student awareness, Waters says an events hotline will be installed. Political issues concerning SUSC will be regularly announced, along with club activities, sports events, the arts, and community events. This service will make it "easy for students to pick up the phone and see what is going on," he says. Waters adds that an informational hotline will be an important form of communication directly from the student body president to the students. As a former special projects director, Waters says that he was directly involved in the push for a new library. "As the enrollment grows, we need a new building," he says, and adds that if the required funding is not available, he would like to explore other possibilties of improving the current facility. The Library is definitely an important pursuit, he says, and notes that without an adequate library, SUSC may run the risk of becoming stagnant. Students will not want to enroll here if research material is not available to further their studies, he adds. In Thursday's party debates, Waters told the student audience that his main goal as president was to "be here on campus to handle problems. That is the most important part of the presidency." He adds this is made possible by appointing student delegates to act as political liaison at the legislature, "biting at ankles" to let them know SUSC is here. There is a need to pursue the use of the money we have now, says Waters. He adds that there is also a need to (continued on page 3) |
