This year’s Student Senate elections brought a bundle of changes, including different position titles and one less week of campaigning. But despite the new system with the elections, a number of strong candidates have stepped forward in hopes of being the voice of the student body.
After the initial elections on Monday and Tuesday, two tickets are left: the BUnited Ticket and the Blue Ticket, each vying to represent the ticket in the speaker of the assembly and secretary of the assembly roles.
There are four adequate candidates who can embody positions with great regard, but when it comes down to it one ticket holds a key component which Bradley desperately needs: experience. Russell Howland and Kelsie Smith possess this Student Senate experience.
The speaker of the assembly can be seen as an insignificant role compared to the president. But Howland has the skills to utilize the position to its fullest potential, and make significant changes for students.
The speaker runs Student Senate meetings and represents the student body through senate’s proposals and legislation. The current speaker, Bailey Miller, has not been a prominent voice on campus. Miller was not on Student Senate prior to this election. It took her the entire year to learn how senate is run, and the student body suffered on behalf of it. Not much legislation was debated on and passed. The student government barely made an impact this year.
Howland has the Student Senate experience to be speaker. He doesn’t need time to figure out how to represent a body. He’s currently the vice president for internal affairs on senate. He holds a leadership role as director of philanthropy on the Interfraternity Council. He knows how to utilize camaraderie and teamwork through his experiences as a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity.
Dashawn Cason is the current secretary of the assembly, and he has done an admirable job. Therefore, Kelsie Smith will easily transition into Cason’s role due to her involvement in senate as well. She’s worked with the Department of Campus Affairs and the Department of Diversity Affairs in hopes of bettering the university. With the power of secretary, Smith can and will do just that, especially with Cason as president.
Howland and Smith are experienced leaders in senate. They know its processes. And they know how to truly represent Bradley students’ needs, much better than the current Cabinet has done.
A vote for Howland and Smith, and the BUnited ticket for that matter, means students will have a voice next school year. They are endorsed.