Seven candidates for Santa Clara University’s First-Year Senate have hit the campaign trail. At the Meet the Candidates event hosted Tuesday evening in the Williman Room in Benson Memorial Center, each senator-hopeful got the chance to share campaign visions publicly for the first time.
Sebastian Avila Farias ’30, Blaise Barbier ’30, Carmelo Goodin ’30, Aiden Joosten ’30, Kate Carnahan ’30, Anton Do ’30 and Londile Mawoneke ’30 took turns pitching their campaign to voters at the event. Familiar issues such as dining hall variety, financial security and student social engagement again topped the ticket for many candidates.
Five of the seven candidates will ultimately be elected to represent the class of 2030 in the Associated Student Government. Here’s a closer look at each of their campaigns.
Londile Mawoneke
Mawoneke shared goals for improving Benson dining—specifically addressing inconvenient hours, expanding vegetarian options, pushing for more diversity in cuisines and minimizing wait times.
“Students with different dietary needs should have satisfying choices throughout the week,” said Mawoneke.
Mawoneke stated that she wants to create a more inclusive community for the first-year class, and be a representative students feel comfortable voicing their concerns to.
Anton Do
Do’s campaign centers around providing first-years with events and opportunities to build a greater sense of belonging on campus. He aims to have a “community driven campus,” noting how many first-year students struggle with the transition into college.
“I hope that we can center ASG more as a place of belonging and put forth events for everyone,” said Do. “That way we can aid everyone in finding their belongings.”
Kate Carnahan
Similarly to Mawoneke, Carnahan campaigned on making changes to Benson, specifically through accommodating students with allergies and food restrictions.
Carnahan iterated plans to expand food options for students with different dietary restrictions, provide a more thorough education on cross-contamination for dining hall workers, and put designated allergy free sections in a completely separate location, away from food containing allergens.
Aiden Joosten
Joosten centered his campaign around affordability for students. He noted how his experience with paying for his own college education exposed a lack of financial transparency when it comes to paying for additional school materials.
“I’m just vouching for more transparency financially, and just a better understanding of what we’re paying for and why we’re paying for it,” said Joosten.
Carmelo Goodin
Goodin’s campaign, similarly to Joosten’s, focuses on financial transparency. Goodin specifically noted a lack of transparency through the University platform Workday, claiming that the user interface needs to be simplified to improve student understanding.
“That way every person can truly understand what they’re paying for,” said Goodin. “How far does their money go, what resources come with that?”
Goodin also notes that he would like to see social media accounts break down the basics of finances at the University, as well as informational sessions explaining finances to students.
Blaise Barbier
Blaise Barbier’s approach is focused on resolving even the simplest of issues with efficiency.
“My one goal is to fix the ice machine in Benson,” said Barbier.
Barbier notes this goal is specific and easily achievable. He claims having “specific, doable, quick actions” will allow his time as senator to focus on problems as they arise.
Barbier also emphasized his perspective that promotion for student events should be improved.
Sebastian Avila Farias
Farias’s campaign prioritizes bringing more internship opportunities to students on campus, especially for underclassmen. He noted a desire to host more career and internship fairs on campus and increase their accessibility to underclassmen and first-year students.
Voting for the First-Year Senate election opens at 8:00am and closes at 11:59pm Wednesday, Oct. 21. To cast a vote, students must login to their MySCU Portal and navigate to the “Campus Elections” tab. Results will be emailed to the student body on Thursday, October 22.