The fall semester has begun, and with it comes a new student government. In an effort to introduce them to you, we spoke with ASSC advisor Amory Cariadus. She was very excited & hopeful for the new government.

“I think they are going to do a great job. They are learning the ropes and catching on quickly,” she said.

She explained that the new officers, President Denisse Gonzales and Vice President Jackie Solozado, are working hard to let the students know about what is going on at our campus. They are producing a survey for students to inform the government what they want from them. Amory felt that, “they are taking steps in the right direction.”

She believes that the general focus of this new government will be to discover the wants/needs of the student population, form goals to achieve those desires, and then pursue them to accomplishment. She thinks that one of the most pressing issues will be the current budget crisis; fee increases, reductions of services due to elimination of certain jobs, and how these will affect the students. They hope to assist the students as much as they can.

The new officers have already attended a few workshops and training here on campus, but there are two bigger leadership conferences they hope to attend in October. The first would be with the California Community College Student Affairs Association, a group of professionals who organize these leadership conferences. Then later in the month there will be one with the Statewide Community College Assembly, where they will participate in voting on statewide issues, such as the fee increase.

As far as on campus events go, they will be giving out pizza at their info table to night students tonight, August 19. This Friday, August 21, they will be holding a BBQ from 11am to one pm. And then on Wednesday, August 26, there will be a pancake breakfast from 7:30am to 10:30am, or “until the food runs out, which ever comes first.” They will be giving out their surveys to students at these events, so be sure to attend.

The first ASSC meeting of the year is to be tentatively held on August 31, at 2:30pm in room 6202.