President
Alistair Chapman
Alistair Chapman has had four years of experience in ASUA and now wants to finish off his career by serving as student body president.
He has participated in the ASUA basketball league, the community development team, the Student Health Advisory Committee and now serves as Arizona Students' Association task force director to lobby the state Legislature.
He said his vision for the student government has been in the works since his freshman year.
His vision includes instituting a voting poll on campus for national and other elections. He also wants to include a voter registration form in every orientation packet.
He said a poll could increase the number of student voters, which would give university students a stronger voice.
Chapman also said he wants to make advisers more accountable for the advice they give students because some students have had to take a semester of unnecessary classes as a result of bad advice.
He said he would first work to improve the faculty adviser training program and, if that doesn't work, he wants to enforce a contract that would hold the adviser accountable.
Josh Shapiro
Josh Shapiro, vice president of Delta Tau Delta, said ASUA has done nothing for him during his three years at the UA, and now he wants to see something done about it.
As an ASUA outsider, Shapiro wants to increase student input in ASUA through online student surveys and office hours on the Mall. In addition, Shapiro said that graduate students do not have a voice in ASUA, a reason why he wants to appoint a liaison between the Graduate and Professional Student Council and ASUA.
To increase student representation in the ASUA Senate, Shapiro wants to expand the senate to 18 members, with one senator representing each college.
In addition, Shapiro said students should be able to volunteer and receive college credits.
Shapiro also wants to reform the Zona Zoo pass system into a priority point system for men's basketball tickets. The new system would grant students points for being active on campus through attendance in clubs, athletic events and other UA-related activities.
Shapiro said his No. 1 priority as president is to improve ASUA and get students involved.
When making decisions, Shapiro said the question ASUA should always ask is, "How does this benefit the students?"
Executive Vice President
Sara Birnbaum
Sara Birnbaum loved being an ASUA senator this year and wants to help the next class of senators be successful by serving as next year's ASUA executive vice president.
Her platforms include assigning 40 clubs to each senator to improve representation.
She also wants to have council meetings between senators and club representatives so clubs can discuss the issues they have on campus.
Birnbaum would match up senators with club advocates to promote communication between the two groups and to establish better club contacts.
As a senator, she put together a forum to bridge the divide between students and neighbors. As executive vice president, she would try to provide more on-campus activities for students to help reduce the number of problems with neighbors and underage drinking.
Birnbaum said her ultimate goal as an ASUA officer is to better the school for the future.
Blake Buchanan
Blake Buchanan, also an ASUA senator, said he is the most qualified candidate for executive vice president.
Buchanan believes he can use his two years in ASUA to achieve his main goal of making ASUA a more unified entity.
Buchanan wants to make the ASUA Senate a more efficient and cohesive unit by educating the senators on what they can and cannot do, then encouraging them to be more productive. In addition, Buchanan said there should be more collaboration among senators.
Buchanan said he would work effectively with the president and administrative vice president to unify the three branches of student government. He plans to use the elected senators as liaisons among the three branches.
Buchanan also wants to advertise that club funding is available to clubs at no cost. Almost half of the money available for clubs has not been used, he said. To advertise club funding more, Buchanan wants club advocates to speak to all the clubs on campus.
"I am ambitious and very motivated to do whatever it takes to make my job a success," Buchanan said.
Administrative Vice President
Jordan Miller
Jordan Miller, Freshman Class Council director, hopes to use her two years of ASUA experience in Programs and Services to reach out to students on campus.
"Every student needs to feel like they are part of the student body," Miller said.
Miller plans to increase student representation by building on programs like the Minority Action Council, Women's Resource Center, Pride Alliance and Freshman Class Council.
She also said she wants to improve relations with the administration in order to utilize their resources. Miller said administrators should be kept updated on ASUA programs and how they impact students.
Miller wants to create a marketing director position to oversee all aspects of marketing and public relations for each ASUA program. Miller believes that would increase student participation in ASUA-sponsored events. Miller said she would set up a forum to teach the director how to adequately advertise.
"I am confident that with a positive attitude and the right amount of determination, we can reach out to every student at the university with our programs," Miller said.
Clint Walls
Clint Walls is an ASUA outsider, a fact he said will allow him to offer fresh perspectives to the organization.
He also said he has experience in large organizations, including serving on the Interfraternity Council as a public relations vice president.
Thanks to his experience with various clubs, he said he knows the issues that affect students and clubs outside of ASUA.
As administrative vice president, Walls said he would look for outside funding for the $70,000 SafeRide program.
He would ask for donations from parents and alumni by starting a letter-writing campaign, if necessary, that would slowly help SafeRide ease off of ASUA funding, he said.
Walls said he would also like to see the freshman, sophomore and junior class councils under the watch of the administrative vice president.
He said this would free up the president so he could better advocate and represent the needs of students.
Senators
Fernando Ascencio
ð Create an ASUA public relations position
ð Create a "peer-to-peer" program, in which trained students help other students with their studies and issues like substance abuse, sexuality and depression
ð Repair areas of the parking lots that are becoming a safety issue
Nathan Bell
ð Extend late-night and weekend activities on the weekend to provide an alternative to drinking
ð Have a senate that works collaboratively on projects
ð Hold the senate more accountable
Patrick Brennan
ð Promote collaboration between the UA campus and the Tucson community, and among various committees at the UA
ð Increase student involvement by establishing student advisory committees
ð Make school services more accessible to students by streamlining administrative services
Matthew Carr
0
ð Improve student body relationship with the Tucson Police Department by turning UA students into a formidable political entity
ð Increase student involvement in leadership organizations by holding an "All Honorary Event" on the UA Mall at the beginning of the fall semester
ð Provide organizations and students with an online room reservation system
Steven Eddy
1
ð Increase promotion and marketing of clubs during freshman orientation and throughout the year
ð Create a graduate and research advising service so students can be aware of research opportunities and graduate school options
ð Organize tailgate parties before athletic events
Ashley Eden
2
ð Improve freshman orientation by providing more activities that are better organized
ð Create a committee of representatives from the colleges
ð Increase the recycling efforts at the UA by providing drop-off centers for aluminum
Joseph Fu
3
ð Get students off probation by providing mentoring programs and personal classes that teach study skills
ð Pair up in-state students with international students and create a cultural food fair to increase interaction
ð Advertise the ASUA Web site more and have a list of programs and opportunities for involvement
Stephanie Hartz
4
ð Hold a "Fall Cultural Fair" as a fund-raising opportunity for cultural organizations and to promote awareness and appreciation of the diverse student body
ð Have tailgate parties and road trips for Zona Zoo members to increase school spirit
ð Encourage student political activity
ð Begin dialogue with Student Union Memorial Center representatives to arrange for the student union to accept debit cards
ð Create a constituent council, in which colleges, clubs and residence halls would be designated an ASUA senator
Erin Hertzog
5
ð Fund raise to help the Student Recreation Center expand and purchase new equipment
ð Gear men's basketball more toward the interest of students by creating a student section and offering more tickets for the student body
ð Increase school spirit by using ASUA funds to purchase red shirts for "red-outs" at athletic events, and having screens set up on the Mall, on specific days, to watch UA games
ð Lobby for more Zone 1 parking
Reina McDonald
6
ð Give students more access to ASUA's events, resources and news by putting a monthly newsletter insert into the Arizona Daily Wildcat.
ð Provide transportation to the polls for the 2004 presidential elections and provide information about the elections
ð Have more activities for the students, such as the Rec Center's swimming pool for "Dive-in Movies"
Valerie Odeh
7
ð Improve the relationship between the ASUA Senate and campus organizations
ð Conduct surveys and forums about campus life
ð Feature clubs in the Arizona Daily Wildcat so students are more aware of the roughly 400 organizations on campus
Cody Ortmann
8
ð Create a "Night Cats" escort service program that would run on weekends to enhance student security and safety
ð Improve communication between students and ASUA
officers
ð Give the $1,000 stipend ASUA senators receive back to the students
ð Increase the representation of women and minorities on campus by promoting organizations designed specifically for them and the general student body
Samira Panah
9
ð Increase campus security by providing 24-hour escort
services
ð Create a more unified and tolerant campus by providing incoming freshmen with forums and educational programs
ð Hold monthly forums to improve community relations
Prashant Raj
0
ð Increase security on campus by extending SafeRide and increasing library security
ð Promote diversity and understanding of various cultures by organizing an International Fair
ð Synchronize all the clocks on campus
Froilan Rellora
1
ð Publicize scholarships more to help students financially
ð Increase the budget of University Tutoring Services to decrease group size during tutoring sessions and purchase more tutoring materials
ð Have club representatives meet with ASUA representatives so concerns are addressed more efficiently
Pita Salido
2
ð Assign 40 clubs to each senator to better represent the student body and make the senate more accountable
ð Build a partnership with the University Activities Board to increase ASUA involvement in community service
ð Create a student leader shadow program so high school students can follow around student leaders on campus
ð Increase advertisement of the ASUA Appropriations Board and other club resources
David Shaaya
3
ð Increase student participation in ASUA by holding office hours on the Mall
ð Promote new clubs and ideas for school activities
ð Bring Spring Fling back to campus
ð Expand CatCard usage by having the Tucson bus system accept the SmartChip
Taryn Shorr
4
ð Create a free, weekly shuttle program to local grocery stores, Target and Wal-Mart
ð Hold a forum each semester for all club presidents
ð Expand the "fireside chats" lunch program with the president to include the ASUA Senate
Daniel Smith-Matthews
5
ð Create a more robust ASUA Web site by adding features like instant messaging and a message board
ð Help the Arizona Students' Association lobby for incremental increases in tuition and increase voter registration at the UA
ð Organize more student forums and forums for international students
ð Poll the student body, including graduate students, and release the results online
Emily Upstill
6
ð Encourage freshman leadership on campus by creating stronger presentations at hall governments and freshman
orientation
ð Promote communication between students and ASUA senators with "Cat Chat" lunches and biweekly editorials in the Arizona Daily Wildcat written by senators
ð Increase communication between clubs and senators