For the first time in four years, there will be a race for Undergraduate Student Government (USG) President and Vice President to close out the spring semester. Four candidates are looking to bring their platform to Bowling Green State University (BGSU) and make an impact for the student body.
D’Mya Brown, Junior philosophy, politics, economics and law major
Brown previously served as the Chief of Staff for USG. The presidential candidate wants the opportunity to make the change she wishes to see with a focus on community building and student experience.
“Making sure that everyone who comes to BG as an undergraduate student understands that they belong somewhere, and that they’re allowed to take part in all of the amazing things we have to offer. But, I also acknowledge that sometimes because of the way things are run on campus or around campus, not everyone feels like they can do that,” Brown said.
A part of the student experience is relationship building and connecting students with administrators is something that Brown is looking to improve.
“We’re leaning really heavily into making sure we have a strong administrative connection, because we know that as undergraduate students, there’s only so much we can do without support of administrators, faculty, staff members, professors. So anything we can do to cultivate that relationship and really make sure that it’s as solid as it can be, will help us make all of the improvements that students want to see,” she said.
Ispiro Halabi, Junior AYA integrated social studies education major
Halabi previously served as the Chief Outreach Officer for USG. The vice presidential candidate hopes to be able to give students a chance to be heard.
“I really want to encourage students to get their voice out and to be represented and feel represented in their opinions, to feel like their opinions on things that are happening on campus are valid and advocate those concerns to administration,” Halabi said.
Halabi wants there to be a chance for students of various disciplines to voice concerns that others may not be aware of. This is something he said is important to understand and advocate for student experiences.
“Ultimately, what I hear coming out of the College of Education or Human Development is different from what somebody coming out of the College of Arts and Sciences or the College of Business is going to hear and is going to understand about the university, they’re going to have different concerns. They’re going to have different opinions on things and so a big thing to me is hearing out all of those opinions,” he said.
Sydney Gourley, Junior advertising major
Gourley previously served as the Internal Affairs Chair for USG. The presidential candidate hopes to be able to make students aware of their resources on-campus.
“I think for a long time, USG hasn’t really been known around campus, and I think kind of revamping who we are as like, you know, we’re a resource, we’re also a bridge between students and faculty,” Gourley said.
With mental health being one of their main platforms, Gourley said she believes USG can be a bridge for students to get access to other resources like the counseling center.
“I think just strengthening relationships between different departments is kind of the biggest goal we have, especially our platform with mental health. We really want to strengthen the relationship between USG, the counseling center, and then being that bridge between students and the counseling center. So they know it’s an opportunity for them to go and get the support that they need,” she said.
Travis Hamlin, Junior criminal justice major
Hamlin previously served as the Director of Sustainability for USG. The vice presidential candidate wants to make sure that students understand the importance of using their voice.
“We really want to encourage students to participate in voting because voting matters and whether it’s just voting for your USG representatives or the president of the United States, your voice matters, even if it’s one vote, that one vote can really just change it all up,” Hamlin said.
USG has numerous opportunities for students to get involved and be representatives of what they’re involved in, something that Hamlin said he hopes to make people aware of.
“There’s students all across campus that may want to experience what it’s like to be in government, help their communities, and just be a part of something bigger. We kind of want to inspire students, whether you join USG, you’re just doing community service in your free time because you want to help people. We want to push people to do things that they feel are good things for them to do and inspire them to kind of push themselves, try something new, expand your horizons,” he said.
Link for people to vote before Friday deadline:
Be sure to vote by Friday at noon
