Portland State students have a new ASPSU presidential candidate on their radar.
Presidential candidate Theophilus Malone was academically disqualified from running on Friday due to a failed class last term. He was informed about the decision Friday by Elections Board Chair Ingrid Castellina.
His vice presidential candidate, Collin LaVallee, is now running for president with Christopher Proudfoot as his prospective vice president.
“It was not my choice. Per the constitution I’m not eligible,” Malone said Monday. “I overextended myself last term … and fell below the requirement. I failed one of my classes, basically.”
Malone said he became overwhelmed with his workload and class schedule and needs to take some time to reevaluate things.
“I need to reevaluate my level of commitment to ASPSU. I want to be involved but I need to reevaluate my time. We’re all students first. Right now that’s my main priority,” Malone said.
LaVallee, 26, ASPSU federal affairs director, is a first-year grad student studying conflict resolution. He recently moved to Portland from Wisconsin.
“Theo is unable to run,” LaVallee said. “The Elections Board knows of the change and has approved it.”
Proudfoot, 26, does not currently hold an official position within ASPSU. He is a former volunteer for State Affairs Director Zack Martinson, LaVallee and Debra Porta, equal rights advocate. Proudfoot was born in Arizona but has lived in Oregon for 16 years.
“Chris was planning on running for senate on [Malone’s and my] slate and has worked with me as an intern for ASPSU. He is someone that has advocated with us on tuition and funding issues as well as other areas so we knew that we could We work well together and both know the issues students face,” LaVallee said.
Proudfoot said that he and LaVallee have had a long history of working together, including putting in time on issues regarding higher education accessibility and affordability.
“We worked together on the very successful ‘Get out the Vote’ campaign,” Proudfoot said, “and have spent a tremendous amount of time building a positive rapport with the Senate, Legislature and administration, testifying on behalf of students at legislative hearings, meetings with decision makers and participating in rallies to encourage investing in Oregon’s higher education.”
The LaVallee-Proudfoot slate said they are committed to working on issues both big and small.
“You know, the facilities and curriculum could be better for students, for sure. In some buildings it’s kind of ugly, honestly,” LaVallee said. “In some rooms you don’t have windows or anything to make you feel like learning; you just kind of want to leave. And there are simple improvements we could do—work with students who are working on art projects, or some creative capacity to improve that.”
LaVallee and Proudfoot are continuing to run on the same vision Malone and LaVallee had initially planned.
“We may make some adjustments and tailor the platform to [Proudfoot] and I, but we want to keep the same vision,” LaVallee said in an e-mail statement.
He added that his plans have not changed dramatically.
“Theo and I were on the same page and we will continue with the basic platform and slate. One of the main reasons why I still want to run and that our slate members are still on board is because we know that it is not about the individuals, but the team as a whole,” LaVallee said.
Proudfoot said his campaign’s decision to continue on is based on strong community support and a dedication to advocating for student rights.
” [LaVallee] and I are committed to access for students to attend school, access for students to support while in school and access to resources to enrich the already diverse and unique environment that exists at Portland State,” Proudfoot said.
LaVallee said he is striving to put the recent shake-up behind him as his campaign moves forward.
“I’m very confident in our ability to make those decisions—to both work with administration, faculty and step up when students’ voices are not being heard,” LaVallee said.