| In this year’s ASPSU Elections, there seems to be general agreement on a lot of the issues that are important to this campus. However, there are significant differences between my opponents and me. The thing that sets myself and the rest of the Morse/Bufton Progressive Slate apart from the others is the scale of our solutions and the plans that we have to actually achieve them. How are we going to make it happen? On each issue, we will use grassroots organizing tactics to build student power and advocate for change. To us, that’s what it means to be progressive. We will build coalitions, gather public comments, organize media events and generally do whatever it takes to package the PSU student voice in a way that can’t be ignored by the administration or by state legislators. Unlike our opponents, we are not about negotiation; we’re about action, and that’s why we’ve been out in the Park Blocks gathering petitions on our platform issues for weeks. The solution is not putting more students on University Committees; real results only happen when you run campaigns that make it smart for the administration and for our leaders in Salem to do what’s best for students. Our history as student group leaders and organizers gives us the experience and the know-how that we need to make this happen. We plan on making changes in three main areas that will make PSU better for all students. AFFORDABILITY. College is really expensive, and it’s just getting worse. Tuition in Oregon has increased by 44 percent over the last four years, and I know I’m not alone when I admit to struggling to pay for rent, tuition and food. To make PSU more affordable, we will work with the Oregon Student Association to prevent tuition from rising, to fully fund the Oregon Opportunity Grant, Oregon’s only need-based financial aid program and to invest more in the Student Childcare Program. We will also reignite the Higher One Boycott. Together, all of these things should make a noticeable change in how much money you pay for your education, and it should give a whole new set of potential students the chance to come to PSU.DIVERSITY. I am very passionate about this platform piece in particular. There is so much we can do to make this place more diverse in terms of race, sexuality and religion. In order to recruit and retain a more diverse student body, it’s important to go beyond just getting people of color into ASPSU leadership positions. That’s important, don’t get me wrong, but we’ve got to go beyond that. We’ve got to create academic programs that make people really want to come get their education at PSU. More diversity on campus would make PSU a more prestigious university, would bring more money to the school and would be the thing that would make the biggest, most long-term difference. We will work to create majors and departments in Asian Studies, Middle Eastern Studies, Native American Studies and Chicano/Latino Studies. We will also advocate for Queer and Religious Studies. Of course, we also need important PSU resources, especially financial aid information, translated into more languages so that all students can benefit from university services. All students will benefit from more choice and an enriched academic program.SUSTAINABILITY. Obviously this is a big issue that we all agree is important as well. There are a lot of great student organizations out there ?” like Food for Thought, Advocates for Responsible Solutions and PSU Recycles! ?” that are already doing great program work to reduce our on-campus paper and water consumption. We would like to work in coalition with groups like these so that we can leverage the resources of ASPSU to help them be successful in their own missions. Conservation is important, but we think it’s important to go a step further and advocate for systematic, long-term change as well. That’s why we’re proposing that PSU join the Campus Climate Challenge, which is a competition between 500 universities around the country to see who can do the most to reduce their global warming pollution. Our goal for PSU is to convert all of our electricity to renewable energy. This would not only put PSU on the map in terms of sustainability programs, but it would also push the rest of Oregon to adopt similar environmental policies. Please visit www.MorseBufton.org for more information about our platform issues. Take a moment to fill out our online survey about what issues you care about and give us feedback on our campaign.I hope you vote for me and for the rest of the Morse/Bufton slate because you agree with us that PSU can be better on issues that affect all of us. We are running together because there are things that we want to get done, and because if you elect us as your ASPSU representatives, we will have the tools and the resources that we need to get real results. |
To say there is a real disconnect between student government and students would be a serious understatement. This is precisely why we, Mario Campbell and Mayela Herrera, have teamed up to run for ASPSU president and vice president. Our team is a revolutionary one. We have completely different backgrounds and experiences that distance us from the other candidates and catapult us into being the frontrunners of this election. More than distancing us from the other candidates, these differences within our own team reflect the diversity of the student body. It is unwise to team up with people who are of the same image as they only act to compound your weaknesses. We believe the differences between us act to promote strengths that are missing in us as individuals and will make our decisions more sound and representative of students. However, we have the necessary similarities to run ASPSU effectively. We are both involved students on campus who believe more needs to be done to facilitate student involvement in all areas of student government. We also believe there has traditionally been a lack of outreach in ASPSU toward the minorities on campus. However, as Mexican Americans, we will reach out to groups that serve minority students in order to achieve much needed diversity in ASPSU. Make no mistake about it, ‘brown’ can and will work for you.Overall, our goals are more feasible, more beneficial and more in line with the student body than the other candidates in the running. We have assembled a collection of campaigns that stand to benefit student groups, athletics, diversity and, most importantly, the neglected everyday students. The other candidates are focusing on who is more progressive and who can fund student groups at higher rates than the other. Meanwhile we are concerning ourselves with providing an environment conducive to student group success. Throwing money at these groups without first providing a promising, accepting campus is lazy and unhelpful. We liken it to throwing fish into a dry pond; the fish never have a chance to swim. We believe that in order for student groups to flourish like they should, an environment which facilities and promotes student groups’ success must first be established. To reiterate, throwing money in the direction of student groups without first giving them the support and needed resources is simply unfounded. We want more. We want student groups to get fully funded and to see their funds establish their missions. We want student groups with multicultural roots to bring the diversity to campus in order to enrich it. If anyone is capable of such collaboration it is Campbell/Herrera team. We will give student groups, which are essential to achieving diversity on campus, a facilitating campus. Not just lazy, intolerable funding practices.What about everyday students who pay $136 in student fees? We have not forgotten them. On the contrary, this group is the foundation and base for all student-related activities. ASPSU has overlooked these students who don’t vote and don’t partake in spending of student fees. These students need more. Students who pay the same student fee that used to be $136 per term and is now estimated to rise to about $170, don’t get direct benefit. What about them? Where is their representation? It appears to be completely missing and the other candidates don’t even attempt to deceive these students – they just ignore them altogether. That kind of disconnect is what is wrong with ASPSU and the other candidates. What can ‘brown’ do for you? Campbell/Herrera has set up campaigns that stand to positively impact everyday students. Here is what we will give all PSU students; a mix of fun and meaningful campaigns and principals to truly enhance PSU: ?ﾌﾢWe will give all students access to free downloadable music. ?ﾌﾢWe will promote and work with the BookGhost (student run) organization in order to keep book prices low.?ﾌﾢMake campus safety a priority. In particular, we pay $240 to park in the structures yet there is a tremendous amount of crime taking place within these parking structures. We will work for cameras and extra staff to stop break-ins, assaults and other unacceptable crimes. ?ﾌﾢMake senators and ASPSU more accountable to students by establishing senate offices and making regular appointments with department chairs and students because these are their constituents. ?ﾌﾢMake book purchases a tax deduction for PSU students. ?ﾌﾢAsk students first before we assert ‘students’ position in ASPSU decisions. ?ﾌﾢEstablish a student representative on City Council who is not a voting member to advocate and educate City Council on what is important to students at PSU.In closing, we, Campbell/Herrera, are the most inclusive candidates running. So, what can ‘brown’ do for you? Advocate for students on City Council, keep student fee low while still promoting student groups, make textbooks affordable, make campus a safe place, stop crime in parking structures, make senators and ASPSU executive staff more accountable, give students access to free downloadable music and, most importantly, talk to students when working on their behalf. Our reputations and work on campus is well known. Let us continue to serve you. Let ‘brown’ work for you! Vote Campbell/Herrera for positive change because our degrees are only as good as the university we leave behind. |
The student body at Portland State University deserves superior representation which is why we have chosen to run for the President and Vice President of ASPSU. We feel that our experiences on campus, coupled with our outstanding work ethic and knowledge, as well as the slate of candidates that we have chosen to run with, illustrate clearly that we are your best candidates for these positions. Below is a small list of some of our experiences at PSU: Ryan Klute:?ﾌﾢASPSU Vice President ?ﾌﾢUniversity Studies Peer Mentor?ﾌﾢRatepsu.com founder?ﾌﾢSALP Peer Advisor?ﾌﾢGreek Council President?ﾌﾢASPSU Student Fee Committee member?ﾌﾢMidnight Breakfast founder and coordinator?ﾌﾢQueers & Allies member?ﾌﾢASPSU Student SenatorAna Johns:?ﾌﾢASPSU Executive Staff member?ﾌﾢHigherOne Boycott OUS External Coordinator?ﾌﾢASPSU Senator?ﾌﾢStudent Conduct Code Revisions Taskforce member?ﾌﾢASPSU Equal Rights intern?ﾌﾢPSU Panhellenic President?ﾌﾢAuthor of SMSU space approval proposal?ﾌﾢResidence Life staffWe have demonstrated through our past leadership and victories that we have the unique ability to not only talk about what we will do, we can also point to what we have already accomplished. These are a few examples of victories we have won on campus:?ﾌﾢFounded and launched www.ratepsu.com now with over 10,000 ratings and reviews?ﾌﾢBoycotted HigherOne, producing extremely low activation rates and stormed the PSU president’s office with over 400 angry students?ﾌﾢFundraised and brought PSU Midnight Breakfast?ﾌﾢBrought student-use microwaves to Smith Union?ﾌﾢWrote and passed a Student Privacy Bill in the Oregon Legislature protecting our personal info from private companies|?ﾌﾢHeld monthly Campus Town Halls and published over 100 ASPSU goals online with constantly updated progress?ﾌﾢAdvocated for and secured over 3,000 sq. ft. of new space for student groups in Smith Union?ﾌﾢMaintained minimal increase of the Student Fee while expanding student groupsBecause of these victories, student groups now have more office space to accommodate their programming needs and more successful forums in which to share their diverse programming with the student body. On-campus resources are more accessible and affordable, our privacy is ensured and students are able to make more informed decisions when constructing their academic course load. Though we have tackled and won challenges in the past, there is still so much more that we would like to do for the student body:We will re-examine all of the fees associated with enrollment, textbook prices, cost of on-campus food options and transportation to make our university more affordable and more accessible. On a statewide level we will work tirelessly to ensure that aid programs, such as the Oregon Opportunity Grant, are fully funded. We will balance the work we do on a state and national level with taking care of pressing student issues at home, such as HigherOne and more covered bike racks.We have a responsibility as members of the campus community to ensure that our environmental footprint is as shallow as possible. Creating a more sustainable campus begins with discovering innovative ways to reduce our water and paper waste, conserve energy and providing sustainable transportation and food options. We will work with our constituents on campus not only to achieve these goals, but also to make PSU a model university from which other campuses around the nation can gain knowledge and expertise. PSU is the “most diverse university in Oregon,” yet this university continues to de-prioritize these issues and pass more of their recruitment and financial responsibility to students. PSU can no longer simply require the students to pick up the tab when it comes to recruiting and retaining underrepresented student populations on campus. This will change, and if elected, the PSU administration will have ample opportunity to hear these concerns.Please take a moment to checkout our slate and the campaign goals and concrete plans to bring more victories to the students of PSU at www.votepsu.com. |
