Elections were held from Monday, May 11, through Thursday, May 14 for the three executive council positions in the Associated Students of Central Oregon Community College. The three who were voted in by the student body will then appoint three general council members to complete the ASCOCC council for next year. There were six candidates for the executive council, four of which are current ASCOCC members.
Brenda Pierce, currently events coordinator for student government, felt that she had accomplished a great deal in her service to the council so far, but wanted to try something different next year. With her extensive background in advertisement, she hoped to serve as the marketing coordinator with the goal of increasing advertisement for events in Redmond.
“First thing is connecting with the Redmond campus… There is a large following of students that are out there that don’t feel connected to COCC because they are so far away,” said Pierce.
She would also like to see more funds access for new clubs, and is currently working on creating banners for all the clubs that can be displayed at events.
Matt Coito, currently project coordinator for the ASCOCC, expressed interest in the club coordinator position. He felt his strong communication skills and even disposition would make him well suited for this job. Coito’s goals included increasing club participation and activities.
“I’d like to see some more clubs on campus and maybe see how clubs can promote… to get more activities done,” said Coito.
Coito was responsible for organizing the ASCOCC Earth Day event, and has contributed heavily to several other projects throughout this year.
Terry Link, currently budget coordinator, and John MacAulay, currently club coordinator for the ASCOCC and former editor-in-chief of the Broadside, also ran for office again. Both have played a key role in previous ASCOCC activities, and have worked to keep students best interests in mind.
Chelsea Riley, currently a first year student at COCC, was very enthusiastic about running for office. Her first choice for a position if elected was events coordinator, but any position that would allow her to connect and interact with students on campus was her ultimate goal.
“I mostly just want to work with student government to better the students’ experience, so whichever position I could get would be another way for me to outreach to students,” said Riley.
Riley has experience with leadership roles at her high school as president of the theater board, and has seen first hand what it takes to work successfully as a group.
Heather Madden, the final candidate for executive council, is a second year student, and is currently the president of the aviation club on campus, with the hope of obtaining her pilot’s license. She felt that her background in club leadership would make her a good choice for either events or club coordinator, and she hoped if elected to get the word out about the ASCOCC to students.
“Not many students on campus even know that we have a student government, so I really want to try to get people to know who we are and what we have to offer, and what their money is being spent on being a student here, and trying to get events that cater to them,” said Madden.
Election results were announced Friday, May 15, and the winners (will insert) now face the task of appointing three more general council members for the ASCOCC.