Explain your main platform and how you will implement it.
Arkie: “Our main idea is that we want to improve student life. Our big idea is going to tackle things like stress anxiety because UMBC is a rigorously academic school, and we know that that’s one of the main issues that college campuses across the nation are facing. Things that can cause stress anxiety like grades, not being as involved, not knowing what is going on with the administration. Specifically, we want to tackle the registrar policy because we think right now there might not be a deadline for when professors need to submit grades. We want to look into that.”
Explain why I should vote for your ticket in particular.
Calvin: “Overall we are pretty involved individuals and we’ve held leadership positions in multiple organizations. We involve ourselves well on campus but we always keep academics first, so we have great time management skills.”
Why do you believe you are the most qualified to be the leaders of SGA?
Calvin: “Within the past two years, I’ve held the position of RA. That’s taught me to be really open to students, hear every angle, listen to every perspective, and I think that translates well with SGA. I want to represent myself and Arkie obviously, but the student body as well.”
How do you plan to campaign?
Arkie: “Calvin and I are definitely going for the face to face campaigning. We don’t want to be in people’s faces, we just want to talk to people and see what they want and then cater to them.”
If you don’t get elected, how do you plan to help improve the campus?
Arkie: “I think for sure we’d like to stay involved. I know other student athlete candidates are running, such as Pandora Wilson, but I want to make sure our body is being represented. It’s a pretty big group on campus and to have us constantly involved is important.”
What are some other clubs and organizations that you have assisted?
Calvin: “I’ve been a resident assistant for the past years on campus and am the current president of the Viet Nam Medical Assistance Program.”
Arkie: “I am a member of the UMBC Woman’s Lacrosse team, and I’m a member of the UMBC Student Advisory Committee.”
If you were forced to drop out of the SGA race, what candidate would you support?
Calvin and Arkie: “We would answer that, but we don’t know any of the other candidates’ platforms right now.”
What do you think is the primary function of our SGA?
Calvin: “The power of the people’s voice. A lot of the administration thinks there are changes that should be made to the university. Let’s say they can’t necessarily bring it up, but they’ve heard students talking about it. Students need to gather and collectively say they want a change and work with the administration rather than against the administration.”
What is one policy you would like to enact on campus?
Calvin: “Our Registrar Policy. Semester after semester we hear almost everyone complain about how they haven’t got their grades yet, it’s after Christmas or it’s a month into summer and they don’t know if they’ve passed a class. We want to implement a policy with the administration that requires teachers to have their grades in two weeks or so after exams are done.”
What is your stance on the recent budget proposed by the Jankoski administration?
Calvin: “It’s hard to say for me personally because I haven’t seen the numbers, just the percentages.”
Final question: The executive branch has had many “ghost departments” this year, in that they appointed numerous individuals to lead various executive departments without posting an open application. Positions were essentially given to friends. Upon examination, these departments have been unproductive and/or completely stagnant. When it comes to appointing department heads and overseeing the various executive departments, how would you make sure the mistakes made this year don’t happen under your administration in the future?
Calvin: “We would avoid this by doing what we are doing currently. Talking to other student leaders on campus, officers in other organizations and trying to see who fits the position best.”
