Allen Abraham's Responses

Allen Abraham

Information Systems

Junior

1. Out of all the 16,000 students on campus, what makes you the most deserving student to influence the more $3.1 million budget funded by our student activity fee?

I have previously served in USG as an active Senator on the Budget Committee. I have written legislation that benefited campus life, including one to create a competitive event grant. An event grant is a grant that specifically set aside for student clubs for creative event ideas. I believe I have the experience necessary to do the job required of the Treasurer and much more.

I would ensure that all student clubs are fairly funded and properly heard by USG. I will create a fair process for appropriating funds to the various student clubs. I will do my best to cut administrative expenses within USG and redirect those funds back to clubs. I will always represent the views of the student body!

2. What experience do you bring to the position you are running for? Why are you qualified?

As stated earlier I was part of the Budget Committee as a Senator so I was able to aid in the budget process. During my time out of USG I was able to see the needs of the campus community, specifically the various clubs on campus. I attended various events in which club leaders were paying out of pocket for things USG didn’t cover the expenses for.

3. Is this your first time getting involved in USG? If so, why are you interested in getting involved? If not, why do you wish to be involved again?

This is not my first time getting involved in USG. However I wish to be involved again because I believe that I know what members of this campus community want. I wish to increase club funding to ensure that all clubs have the ability to put on the events they wish to. I also would like to create a fair process for clubs to receive funding; we have seen in the past certain clubs have gotten bigger budget over others. I will also communicate all matters with the student body. I will respond to all emails and calls as soon as possible so that no one is left wondering.

Overall I wish to get involved again because I want to represent the undergraduate student body. I think some have forgotten that USG exists to represent the students. Most importantly, representing the students requires frequently communicating with the student body.

4. What do you think is the best thing about USG and if elected, how do you plan to continue that?

I think this year the best thing about USG was the “town hall” meetings that were held to get student input on the changes to the financial bylaws. If elected I would continue that next year but I would communicate the meetings to the entire student body well in advance of the meeting. I found out about some of the meetings after they already passed.

5. On a scale of 9-10* (10 being the highest) how successful were the past two semesters for USG?

I think giving a 9 – 10 scale is not an effective way to measure success, because USG has not reached a level of a nine yet. However, if this scale were from 1-10 I would give USG a solid 5. The reason for this number is because there has been a lack of student life on campus in the past, even in my freshman year I saw this. There has been improvement in that aspect.

However, I would like to see more student input in matters related to student life. I also would applaud the event grants to a certain extent; clubs were able to get grants to host various events however there were some clubs that were favored heavily in the grant process. So there is enormous room for improvement but USG has started to take a step in the right direction in certain areas.

6. What are USG’s biggest flaws, and how do you plan to correct those? For those currently in USG, what have you done to try to correct those flaws?

I think the biggest flaw about USG is their communication with clubs. While I was petitioning many have complained how they would try to get in touch with certain members in USG and they would never get a response or they would get a response way too late. This is wrong and this has to be changed.

The students elect us, so USG has a responsibility to promptly respond to the students. We should have better communication with all members of the student body. For myself I have this rule of 24 hours, where I try to respond to all emails and calls within 24 hours. If I don’t know the answer to something I will update them quickly and I will then find the answer. Communication is key!

7. Do you think it’s right for USG to give SAB the same budget next year despite a surplus of over 100,000 for this year?

Again while petitioning I have stated that I would cut about $100,000 from the SAB budget and put that back towards clubs during the fall budgeting process. Any money saved in the budget will be given directly back to the clubs!

8. Do you think that putting on successful campus events should be prioritized over increasing clubs’ budgets?

I think both should be given equal weight. If you look at the campus community you have students who just attend major events and then you have students that attend club meetings to get involved. In order to cater to both groups, one should give equal weight to both club budgets and campus events.

Again the event grants was instituted to give clubs more opportunities to put on successful campus events however they were restricted by the caps put on the funding limit. If elected I will increase the cap to allow for more flexibility.

9. Representing the student body sometimes means taking a firm stance against administration policies. How willing are you to speak up on behalf of the student body, even when it means conflicting with administrators?

I stand up for what is right. I also know that the students elected me to speak for them. I will always speak up on behalf of the students, even if that means being at odds with administrators. Students are Actively Fighting for Equity and I will be right there beside them.