Many of you in the class know, because you helped me by signing my signature sheet a few weeks ago, but for those of you that don't know, I am running to be an On-Campus Representative on the UPUA assembly! UPUA is your student government, and many students are campaigning for positions now anticipating the elections that will be held next week on Wednesday the 30th. On this day the students decide who their student representatives will be..as long as they vote!
I am becoming increasingly busy with my campaign, and am hectically trying to balance it with my schoolwork. However, I am enjoying the experience because I have an interest in the way government and politics works and think its even cooler at the University level. One reason I think its cooler is because the students that are running honestly have and interest in making the lives of Penn State students better. Few of them are running for a power climb, and most of them are running with the students interests at heart. Many times in politics voters have to deal with corrupt politicians, but not in student government, and I think that makes the races more exciting.
Yesterday, I started my first round around campus flyering, and trying to get the word out to vote for me! Let me know if you've seen any of these flyers, I would love to hear that you did!
I am running for an On-Campus Rep spot and I have formed my platform around my desired position. I am still in the process of perfecting my platform, and I would love to hear any suggestions or things you would like to see changed at Penn State in your comments. The only way student government can effectively represent the students is with student input, and I will be very receptive to your ideas. For now here's a general outline of my platform:
Residence Life: - make recycling easier for students and dorms more eco-friendly by ensuring recycling bins on each floor of EVERY residence hall. (this is inconsistent now).
- increase the community of residence life by facilitating the means of finding friends with similar interests, and hosting more events to increase communication between on-campus students, celebrate diversity and foster closer relationships between students.
- address the issue of dorm security and take steps to increase security in areas where students feel unsafe.
Student Health: - increase the number of vegetarian options in the dining halls and increase the variety of healthy choices for non-vegetarians.
-increase the accessibility to healthy food by keeping healthy (i.e salad) vendors open later.
-make gym hours more flexible, and cater to student's schedules
-make gym more accessible to students by decreasing its cost for membership
Student Voice in Government: -expand our relationships with other Pennsylvania universities to place united pressure on our State Representatives.
-initiate more constant contact with our State Representatives throughout the year.
-increase voter awareness and involvement on campus because voting is our strongest means available to promote our interests as students.
I hope you liked my platform and if you have any questions, ideas or suggestions email me at kmq106@psu.edu, or just comment on my blog! I want to hear your ideas, and would love to represent you next year as an On-Campus Representative. If your living on campus next year please vote for me on March 30th!! Thanks and if you'd like to join my face book group here it is: Vote for Katie Quinn!
Anyway, thanks for reading my blog and let me know what you think! :)
I think it's really great that you're running to be an on-campus representative. It's hard putting yourself out there sometimes in fear of rejection but you seem really confident which will only help you in the process. I agree with all of your ideas mentioned in your platform and it would be great to see those changes take place. I think you pinpointed a lot of key issues that many people don't speak up about. Good luck with the election!
ReplyDeleteI think your platform sounds really good! The issues are prevalent to the students and I think they need to be addressed. Its so great that you're running to be an on campus rep. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteYou stances sound really great and it is amazing that you are taking this opportunity to become more involved in UPUA and in the Penn State community. It takes a strong person to put yourself out there like that and I hope that it goes well. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteKatie,
ReplyDeleteI love all of your ideas, especially increasing the amount of vegetarian options as well as healthy non-vegetarian options and keeping healthy food places open later. These are common issues and I know when I'm studying at the HUB late at night my only options for food are sbarro, chats, or a snack from the vending machine. Sometimes a salad from Mixed Greens would be nice! I also like your idea of lowering the cost of a gym membership. I feel like the price of a gym membership is what holds a lot of people back from getting one. These are all great ideas Katie, I will definitely vote for you! :)
Sophia