Q: What made you want to be a part of ASG?
A:  In all honesty, it’s kind of a personal story. I had a younger brother and he went to Reedley. He had a lot of issues with financial aid, got behind in his class and didn’t have tutors available. His teacher wasn’t one that was willing to work with him. My brother was really frustrated and just dropped school and about a year later, we ended up burying him. He passed away.

So, the neighborhood I come from isn’t the best, but I’m good with kids.  I always have been, so all the little kids know me.  I play with them; I tutor them, and I refuse to let that happen to anyone else. So, I started to think, ‘Ok, in order to make things happen, I have to be in a position where I can actually make things happen.’ I didn’t know what student government was, so I started asking around. I sat in one of the meetings, got an idea of how they worked and what they were about and then I did the application, and I was in.

Q: What have you learned while in ASG?
A:  I’ve just learned that when you’re a part of groups, like clubs, you guys are all different. Say it’s a club. Everybody’s different but they have the same common interest, whatever drives them to that club. ASG is somewhat the same but you have more diverse people and you guys have the common goals as far as wanting to help people but all different reasons and all different ways.

So here, I’ve just learned how to get along with people from different backgrounds and how to prioritize my time and organize myself a lot better, so that I actually get things done. I’ve always been a people’s person, you know, like just get out there and meet people, but it helped me a little more as far as presentations go and speeches. Being a part of ASG, you have to interact with not only students but faculty and administrators and all of that. So it has kind of helped me in a professional sense.

Q: What are some of the strengths and -weaknesses of ASG?
A: I think the strongest thing about this ASG is the people that are here. I am really blessed that those who have stayed are here. I think that we have a really strong team and I think the team being strong is going to be able to push this organization forward and get through what we really need to get through and make sure that we get things done. As far as the weakness, I’d say that our only weakness is numbers. You know, in order to get things accomplished, it’s a lot easier when you have more people. When you have fewer people, they are spreading themselves thin. You have to sit on more committees, you have to pick up a little more work to get things done, and at the same time, we’re students, so  we still have our studies and classes and all of that. So I would say at the moment that’s kind of our biggest weakness.

Q: What happened to ASG recently? What is the plan to correct its course?
A: I don’t really think I need to answer that because you guys have basically posted it all on your newspaper. So I’m pretty sure you guys are all well informed as to what’s been going on. As far as what needs to be to correct it, some people have made comments saying that they don’t feel that I am going to get anything done just because I have to clean up Nathan’s mess. I really don’t feel there’s much of a mess to clean up. It was something, you know, something that really hit us hard, but at the same time, we’ve dealt with it. We’ve had recently, I believe, seven people resign and I think there was like, what, 10 people involved? That doesn’t leave much of a mess to clean up.

There is the whole thing of trying to mend or trying to reestablish ourselves with the students here on campus to let them know that we are serious and that we are here for them. We have to reestablish ourselves with faculty and administrators and as far as correcting all of that, I think that as long as they see that we get back to business and are taking care of what we need to take care of, I think that will. You know how they say that actions speak louder than words. I think that fits that perfectly.

Q: Did being appointed president shock you?  Why?
A: Yes. I had a feeling that I was going to get nominated, but did I think that I was going to be the only one they saw something in to nominate? No. Did I think that I was going to have a unanimous vote for me? No. And did I think I was going to get the whole standing ovation? Of course not. So I think that’s what really got me shocked. I knew some people believed in me, but I didn’t realize how much people believed in me.

Q: What are your plans for the ASG as its new president?
A: We basically have a road  -map and that’s a calendar.

That speaks for itself. We already have a lot of things that we need to get done on top of that.  I’m really hoping to get the designated smoking areas finalized. I know there are a lot of people from the senate who have a lot of great ideas that they want to do this coming semester, so it’s just developing those. We just want to make the campus overall what the ASG is about, which is making it easier for students.

I wasn’t here two years ago or three years ago, but I do know that ASG has somewhat of a bad rep with faculty members or administrators. I want to mend those bridges. I want ASG to be able to work well with not only students but faculty members and administrators and staff and everybody.  And I know there’s this, and I don’t know why, but there’s this tension with the Rampage. I don’t know where that started, and I don’t even know why it is, but that’s another thing that I want to fix. You know, you guys are the ones that report to the students and we’re the ones that represent the students. I think that rather than working against each other, we would both benefit and the students would benefit if we learned to work with each other.