Student Government Association (SGA) president, vice president and 14 senators were elected on Monday, Nov 6., with a runoff election for a fifth senator for the class of 2019 held this week. Amulya Deva was elected president and Rachel Daniel was elected vice president. The class of 2021 senators are Noelle Barrera, Maddie D’Iorio, Nick Pereda, Mia Quintanilla and Isabella Schlag. The class of 2020 senators are Benjamin Gonzalez, Juan Luevanos, Angel Ramirez, Simone Washington and Ty Tinker. The class of 2019 senators are Sam Afshari, Sarosha Hemani, Daniela Montufar Soria and Julia Schults, with the fifth position not yet determined.
Three class of 2021 senators commented on why they decided to become involved with SGA during their first year and what they hope to accomplish as senators.
“I wanted to get involved in SGA because I saw it as a great opportunity to enact change in our university and help make Trinity a better place,” wrote class of 2021 senator Maddie D’Iorio in an email interview. “I am most looking forward to learning more about how our campus works internally and encouraging and sponsoring programs which bring about campus unity.”
Nick Pereda, class of 2021 senator, also wants to have a positive influence around campus.
“I am happy with the election results, and I believe that we will be able to work together to make material changes that have a positive impact on the general health and well-being of other students,” Pereda wrote in an email interview. “I’m excited for this upcoming year and will do everything in my power to express the interests of my peers.”
Mia Quintanilla, class of 2021 senator, was involved with student government at her high school and became involved at Trinity because she aspires to someday work in the U.S. government.
“Growing up I have always been surrounded by politics whether it be from my mother, who has held her position as District Clerk of Hidalgo County for 10 years, or from my grandfather, who recently retired his 20-year position as congressman,” Quintanilla wrote in an email interview. “I would like to carry on the legacy of my family to help others through the government. I am very pleased with the overall outcome of the elections. I am most looking forward to meeting my new constituents and being a voice for my class.”
Ty Tinker, class of 2020 senator, served as a senator during his first year and decided to run again after enjoying the experience.
“I’ve had family who came to Trinity, and I’ve always been really interested in how I can contribute to Trinity,” Tinker said. “My family did really cool stuff here, and I want to as well. As a naà¯ve freshman, I got pretty lucky stumbling upon SGA because we do a lot. I had no idea, I just wanted to do something. SGA is a fluid process. Nothing big, or even small, can really get done in a year or with a single senate. There’s things that we’ve been doing that just started this year, and there’s things that we’re really excited to carry on from previous senates. There’s definitely some initiatives there.”
Angel Ramirez, class of 2020 senator, served as a first-year senator starting at the end of last semester.
“I didn’t get a lot of time to actually see SGA in action my first year, but in the time I was there, I was very interested to see that you can pass a couple of legislations that actually benefit the student body do as SGA,” Ramirez said. “Even if it’s not something that you think is significant, at the end of the day, if it’s just a small change that could help students in any way I think it would be worth it.”
Ramirez also explained some of the goals that he has for the upcoming year.
“This past semester we’ve been changing the constitutional outline, just to get our guidelines really set to see what we’re able to do as SGA,” Ramirez said. “A couple of weeks ago I was talking to a couple of friends from the University of Texas, and their SGA passed legislation that allowed for students to see the syllabus on the course selections when they have their registration. That’s something that we don’t have. I would like to keep working on that. Hopefully there will be something that students will see in the near future.”
Daniela Montufar Soria, class of 2019 senator, is getting involved with SGA for the first time this year because she wants to bring awareness to the struggles of international students on campus.
“I look forward having an opportunity to voice my concerns for the international and minority student body,” Soria wrote in an email interview. “I think it is crucial because as noncitizens we oftentimes feel we don’t have a voice in the American democratic system, but here in Trinity the opportunity to be a senator and a representative as part of SGA is open to everyone. I believe that if given the opportunity, international students and minorities will be able to see that they have a voice that deserves to be heard and that their concerns are as important as everyone else’s.”
Sarosha Hemani, class of 2019 senator, is also getting involved with SGA for the first time this year.
“I wanted to get involved in this position because I want to attend to issues that are brought up on campus,” Hemani wrote in an email interview. “I was involved in student government in high school, and one thing I learned from that experience is just because someone’s opinion is the loudest, does not mean it is the only opinion that exists. I am interested in making sure smaller organizations on campus have an equal opportunity to boost their events on campus and gain membership.”
Hemani also mentioned initiatives that she is interested in furthering as a senator and her happiness with the outcome of the SGA elections.
“I wish to extend resources already offered by SGA such as B-Cycle and the menstrual product initiative by implementing better follow-up protocols, advertisements and student feedback,” Hemani wrote. “President-elect Amulya Deva and vice president-elect Rachel Daniel are some of the most qualified people for the job. I know they’ll do the student body good because they’re kind, generous and brilliant women. I don’t know all of the senators that ran but I am excited to get to work with them. I think together we will resolve campus issues brought forth by the students.”
Julia Shults, class of 2019 senator, believes that serving as an SGA senator is one of the best ways to create a valuable impact on the Trinity community.
“One of my favorite things about Trinity is how involved the student body is, in and around campus,” Shults wrote in an email interview. “As senator, I am excited to improve student involvement by better systemizing the allocation of the student activity fund to provide more diverse options that also maximize student participation. I would also like to build on the first-year academic success initiative by creating more mentoring opportunities and better publicizing student resources on campus. I think our class, as the first group to experience Pathways, is in a unique position to help improve the first-years’ experience.”
