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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (March 28, 1983)
<3 eBOci/e>t3\r-\'£> student dddy ... and what’s in president store for him by Ronnie Crocker Battalion Reporter Being student body president at Texas A&M means putting a lot of time, effort and money into the job and receiving no sal ary for doing so, current presi dent Pat Pearson said. Pearson, a senior political sci ence major from San Antonio, has been meeting that responsi bility since last April. He will re main in his current position un til his term ends April 20. He said that his job is more than just a ceremonial one. His duties include being in charge of the executive branch of the Stu dent Senate and appointing chairmen of the judicial board and members of University committees. Pearson has to attend all Sen ate meetings and some commit tee meetings. He has the power to execute into being all legisla tion they pass. One of his recent duties was to formulate the budget for the Big Event. The job does have its ceremo nial aspects, of course. As the official representative of Fred Billings junior agricultural economics Houston Why should Fred Billings be your next student body president? Fred enjoys work ing hard to serve students and the challenge of getting others to do the same. In recent years, Student Government has shifted from representing the real student interest and has replaced it with its own preconceived idea of what students want. This is primarily the result of a communications breakdown among students, Student Government and the adminis tration. It is not the responsi bility of the students or the administration but that of Stu dent Government, specifically the student body president, as the official spokesman for both. Is Fred qualified to bridge the gap? Over the past three years, Fred has been pri vileged to hold many leader ship positions, of which the following are a few: student senator (two years), three chairmanships for the Con ference on Student Govern ment Associations, the admi nistration’s Traffic Flow Stu dies Committee and adminis trative director of the Legisla tive Study Group, which acts as the formal voice of the A&M student body to the Texas Legislature. These experiences have provided day-to-day working relationships with administra tors through the Legislative Study Group, other schools from across the country Texas A&M student body, Pear son is expected to attend meet ings of such groups as the Texas A&M Board of Regents and to give speeches at Aggie Muster, Fish Camp and other University functions. “A big part of being president is how you view your job,” Pear son said. He adds that he tries to take a positive approach to it and expand its role. Pearson also gets involved in the research stage of Student Government. He said this is “more of the political scientist in me than the role of the presi dent.” Those duties make a great de mand on Pearson’s time and he said his studies have suffered accordingly. He was told when he accepted the job that if his grade-point ratio didn’t drop by 0.3 points, he wasn’t devoting enough time to the job. His GPR dropped just that much last semester. “It’s more than a 9-to-5 job,” he said. He added that although it doesn’t allow much time for studying, it is well worth it. Worth it or not, the job has through COSGA and all levels of students as a student repre sentative. This, coupled with a dedicated desire to serve you, the student body, provides a unique blend of qualifications making the student body president the ultimate chal lenge for serving students. Finally, what will Fred do as your student body president? Fred’s first commitment is one of communication. Most of you never have been asked by a student senator what you think about a problem. That WILL change. The traffic and parking problem solutions already recommended by Fred will be followed through on. And Fred is committed to working with the Job Place ment Center to improve the marketing of A&M graduates, something that affects us all. Fred is dedicated to profes sionally serving you!!! What would you like to see Fred work on? changed Pearson’s values. He said that when he became presi dent his goal was to attend law school and enter politics. He said he no longer wants this and is considering working for his father, who is a movie producer. The Texas A&M student body president doesn’t receive a salary, but Pearson said the job is payment enough. The more tangible benefits of Joe Jordan senior physics Fannett I have leadership experi ence as COSGA Chairman (1982), student representative on TAMU Athletic Council (1982-83), coordinator of senior bootline (1981-83), ex ecutive secretary of the SWC Sportsmanship Committee (1983), coordinator of St. Mary’s Catholic Church Eucharistic Ministers, College of Science senator-at-large (1983), Fish Camp counselor (1981-83) and Fish Aide (1980). After working in Student Government for several years, I realize the importance of the role of student body president in initiating student action and representing student opinion to the administration. My experience has given me the opportunity to develop close working relationships with both students and admi nistrators at all levels. I feel that my background and ex perience will be very benefi cial as we deal with the many important issues that we will Rick Rodriguez junior building construction San Antonio My leadership experience is vast and varied. I was a member of the Student Coun cil while attending San Anto nio Central Catholic. In 1980, I was elected president of the Junior Achievement Com pany in San Antonio. While in Junior Achievement, I re ceived the public relations award for outstanding partici pant. In this aspect, I feel my leadership ability was an asset to both my team and school. While participating in foot ball, I was named captain. I believe I am a qualified candidate. But I feel that my fellow candidates also are qualified. I feel that the yard stick that separates myself from my fellow students is one of extreme determination and dedication. I honestly feel that I am the right man for the the job include front-row tickets to all concerts here, an office, and a S125 gift from the Asso ciation of Former Students. Student body presidents at other Texas universities are paid for their efforts. Charlie Hill, the Texas Tech president, receives $275 a month for his services. All ex ecutive officers there receive the same amount. 1 he University of Texas stu dent body president has respon sibilities similar to the Texas A&M student body president. For this he receives $669 a month. The UT senate voted March 2 to give their next presi dent a $2,000 a semester scho larship. At the University of Houston, Carl Chain receives a $400 a month for being student body president. face next year. I have a sincere desire to continue serving the students at Texas A&M and look forward to the challenges of this office. In addition to representing the views of the student body to the University administra tion and dealing effectively with all issues affecting stu dents, these are a few of the specific goals I would like to address: 1) Work closely with RHA and the Corps to find ways to increase dorm unity and in volvement in University acti vities without endangering cherished traditions. 2) Increase the amount of on-campus recreation facili ties, such as basketball and volleyball courts in dorm areas. 3) Establish longer library hours. 4) Establish an organized on-campus escort service and increase crime awareness to confront the growing crime problem. 5) Establish and maintain better communication and cooperation between Student Government and other stu dent organizations to ensure quality programs and services for students. 6) Establish an open-door policy for the office of student body president. I would like to bring to the office of student body president a sense of openness, honesty and genuine concern for the indi vidual that would encourage greater awareness and partici pation in the student body. position of student body pres ident. Right now, Texas A&M is in transition, bursting at the seams with potential. I am ea gerly awaiting the chance to do my part in helping my Uni versity achieve its potential. I have come up with what I feel are innovative and realistic ideas that I would like to see implemented. I feel I have the capability and determination to accomplish goals that will benefit Texas A&M. I would like to see Student Government acquire more authority to reinforce its deci sions and keep its promises. I would like to see the students’ voice being heard at the Board of Regents’ meetings. I feel it is an oversight not to have the students’ opinions and ideas being presented at these meetings. I feel this would be extremely effective for both the students and re gents. I also would like to estab lish effective committees to re search problems that affect students, such as parking, crime and other student- related problems. I want to see Texas A&M maintain its traditions and keep A&M, as a university, second to none.