Freshmen can vote for freshmen senators Sep. 9 and Sept. 15. Students will be able to vote on WTClass or at any of the kiosks around campus.
Student Body Vice President Kyle Haugh said that freshmen usually have the least representation throughout campus, so it’s important that freshmen vote during this election.
“These are the people that are going to be representing them for the next year,” Haugh said.
Student Body President Tim Vela also said that representation for freshmen is vital to making campus successful.
“Student Government is a voice for the students,” Vela said. “Whether it is an issue of tuition and fees or getting a vending machine on campus, we try to help the students out in any way possible.”
Haugh agreed with Vela saying that Student Government works with issues that impact all of campus.
“Senate is valuable because we’re a deliberative body that can discuss issues that [students] care about and even some that they don’t care about that impact them the most,” Haugh said.
Seven freshmen are officially in the running for Freshmen Elections. Other freshmen can attempt to create a write-in campaign if they did not make it onto the official ballot. Vela said that Student Senate is one of several ways students have an opportunity to become involved in Student Government.
“If you want to be a part of Student Government, FLO (Freshmen Leadership Organization) is for freshmen,” Vela said. “For everyone else we have Student Senate and Judicial Board as well as the President Cabinet appointments.”
Freshman Keltin Wiens said that he choose Student Government above other organizations because Student Government impacts the entire Student Body.
“When I got to WT I was looking for ways to make a difference,” Wiens said. “I thought [Student Government] would be an organization on campus where I could do the best.”
Another freshman Justin Reyna is also running for Freshmen Senator. Reyna said his goals include becoming more oriented with Student Senate and trying to gain new positions in Student Government in the future.
“I’ve been involved in student government through all of grade school,” Reyna said. “I like having a voice and being involved in the decision making process.”
Both Wiens and Reyna said they thought it was important to get involved on campus during their freshman year as opposed to waiting until they were upperclassmen.
“I know that its better to start in the beginning then wait,” Reyna said. “When people wait until their sophomore year they miss out on a lot of great opportunities.”
Reyna said that his involvement on campus has already helped him to become a better student.
“It’s made me more organized and more focused on school,” Reyna said.
All of the freshmen running for senate seats have less than 30 credit hours and will be proportionally representing the freshmen class. All colleges on campus have one senator for every 200 students in their respective college. The number of freshmen seats are decided in the same manner.
