Editor’s note: The Scout interviewed all candidates whose names are on the ballots, plus one write in candidate. Endorsements were decided by a vote of the editorial board, consisting of the editor, managing editor and news editor. There is no endorsement for secretary because junior Sarah Rayfield is running unopposed.
President:
Kevin McClelland
When students go to vote for next year’s student body president, Nick Swiatkowski will be the only name on the ballot.
But he’s not the only choice.
Write-in candidate Kevin McClelland contacted the Scout this week about why he should be the next student body president, and amidst initial suspicions that he wasn’t organized enough to officially run, we’re confident he’s the best man for the job.
McClelland has no experience on Student Senate, in comparison to Swiatkowski’s two years.
However, he’s been involved in a plethora of campus organizations and boasts many leadership roles. He showed us he truly understands the student body.
It’s hard to imagine someone who loves Bradley more and altruistically wants the best for the university. And that’s the No. 1 quality a student body president needs.
McClelland is a strong communicator, and it’s easy for us to imagine him leading the student body and campus community.
He’s the type of person who is remembered when he leaves a room, whereas Swiatkowski is much less bold.
Although he hasn’t served on senate, McClelland proved he is well aware of its workings by conducting detailed discussions about its composition and recent resolutions.
McClelland said he wants to keep the steam rolling from this year’s productive Student Senate. He wants to revisit the idea of a mascot, look into bettering Food Services and aggressively recruit more senators.
Ultimately, the president is the students’ main tie to administration. He or she must be confident and not accept ‘no’ for an answer.
McClelland will do that for us.
Vice President:
Tricia Anklan
With three candidates running, the race for student body vice president is hands down the most hotly contended of the year.
All three have some solid ideas about how to run senate and work for the students.
But only one of the candidates has a proven track record of getting the job done.
That’s why the Scout is endorsing incumbent Tricia Anklan.
Anklan has been a key factor in passing and implementing nearly all of senate’s resolutions this year – and there have been a lot of them.
She was key in working with the Campus Affairs committee to have Center Court open much later during the week, something blurry-eyed, late-night studiers surely appreciate.
Working to implement wireless Internet campus-wide, including in the dorms, is another resolution Anklan, among others, worked to pass.
Quite possibly her greatest accomplishment this year was the writing and passage of the sexual health resolution, also known as the condom plan. The battle over the distribution of cheap condoms had been fought between students and administration for two decades, and many had deemed it an unwinnable fight.
And yet, students can now pay $1 for 15 condoms. Without a doubt, that was a large step in the right direction.
She’s proven time and again she’s perfectly willing to butt heads with the administration to be what she calls a “student advocate.”
The best part for students is that she’s not out of ideas just yet.
Replacing the key system in the dorms with some sort of ID card access is next on her list.
And with her track record, it’s quite possible that it could happen.
Anklan also serves as an assistant resident advisor, meaning she’s able to keep her finger on the pulse of a huge chunk of the student body, something the other two candidates can’t really do.
Opposing Anklan are Amanda Wenger, blue ticket, and Mike Konieczny, green ticket.
Wenger has been on senate for nearly two years. As a freshman, she was a senator from Heitz Hall. This year, she’s the chairwoman of the Academic Affairs Committee.
Wenger was well prepared with a list of priorities in her endorsement interview, and that was reassuring.
That said, Wenger seems better equipped to organize senate meetings than to push resolutions through and go head to head with administration.
Konieczny also had a few solid ideas, including a plan to improve campus security, but he seemed a little hesitant about the position.
He served on senate for only one semester, last fall. In his endorsement interview, he said he was originally considering a run for treasurer, but decided to go for VP in favor of running on a ticket.
Treasurer:
Andrew Kerr
Two experienced candidates seek to become next year’s student body treasurer. However, their experience comes in different forms.
Jenny Nguyen is the Director of Finance for Panhellenic Council. However, the wealth of her experience is from Student Senate, which she has been on for two years. On the flip side, Andrew Kerr has a resume full of finance and accounting experience, but has only served one term on senate.
However, although serving on Student Senate is an important qualifier, the treasurer position can become a somewhat passive role. Nguyen didn’t offer innovative ideas to improve it.
Kerr wants to change money allocation and attend Student Activities Budget Review Committee meetings and become more active with fund distribution.
However, he also has plans to try and provide students an alternative to the bookstore. He seeks to open a book rental agency up as a non-for-profit run by Student Senate, which is not only an innovative idea, but one that he has actually looked into and might work.
As an accounting major, Kerr said he is equipped with the skills to run a small business, and he’s had internships where he has done so. Kerr has also held other leadership positions on campus, volunteered in the community and founded a campus leadership council.
Although Nguyen would likely succeed as treasurer, Kerr has the ability to surpass what’s been done in the position before.
