Spring Break
Candidates debate issues
Diversity, student involvement took center stage as potential student body presidents addressed A&M
By: Chris Hokanson
Issue date: 3/26/08 Section: News
Common themes from each year's student body president debates were discussed Tuesday, along with a few new ones. The candidates for Texas A&M's next student body president gave their views on issues of diversity, communication and Aggie spirit, as well as fixing A&M's image to outsiders and improving relations with minority groups on campus.
Candidates stressed their experiences - from Student Senate to Aggie Allys - and told the audience what they would change about A&M.
"One of A&M's greatest weaknesses is that we don't represent everyone equally," said Jody Saemum, a senior nutritional science major. "I had the opportunity to be an Aggie Ally, and I was able to support gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Aggies. I know a lot of people don't support that, but you know what? I do. We need to make sure we are representing each and every student here at A&M, whether they are GLBT or a different race or a different color. It's not about the color, it's about our experiences."
Communication and breaking down barriers were central issues tackled by the candidates. While Ryan Rieger said he believed A&M has to focus on recruiting and changing the University's perception "as a school with 5,000 students who drive pickup trucks and listen to country music," Mark Gold, a senior biomedical science major, said he believes uniting the campus and it's organizations is important to improving campus life.
"Eighty percent of our student body is involved in some kind of student organizations, but they're concentrated in Greek life, student government or the MSC," Gold said. "It's hard to unite every area of campus. But we can improve this by improving communication, and communicating and uniting those groups with things that make A&M special, events like Muster and Big Event. Once our campus becomes united, you will see drastic improvement in recruitment and other areas."
Terry Dike, a senior mechanical engineering major, emphasized the importance of making every student feel welcome regardless of where they come from. Diversity itself, he said, isn't A&M's greatest weakness, it's the environment that prevents it.
Candidates stressed their experiences - from Student Senate to Aggie Allys - and told the audience what they would change about A&M.
"One of A&M's greatest weaknesses is that we don't represent everyone equally," said Jody Saemum, a senior nutritional science major. "I had the opportunity to be an Aggie Ally, and I was able to support gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Aggies. I know a lot of people don't support that, but you know what? I do. We need to make sure we are representing each and every student here at A&M, whether they are GLBT or a different race or a different color. It's not about the color, it's about our experiences."
Communication and breaking down barriers were central issues tackled by the candidates. While Ryan Rieger said he believed A&M has to focus on recruiting and changing the University's perception "as a school with 5,000 students who drive pickup trucks and listen to country music," Mark Gold, a senior biomedical science major, said he believes uniting the campus and it's organizations is important to improving campus life.
"Eighty percent of our student body is involved in some kind of student organizations, but they're concentrated in Greek life, student government or the MSC," Gold said. "It's hard to unite every area of campus. But we can improve this by improving communication, and communicating and uniting those groups with things that make A&M special, events like Muster and Big Event. Once our campus becomes united, you will see drastic improvement in recruitment and other areas."
Terry Dike, a senior mechanical engineering major, emphasized the importance of making every student feel welcome regardless of where they come from. Diversity itself, he said, isn't A&M's greatest weakness, it's the environment that prevents it.
Be sure to include your name, major, and class year. Submissions without this information are subject to deletion.
By submitting a comment, you agree to thebatt.com's Terms of Use.
You may also send a Mail Call to The Battalion at mailcall@thebatt.com