Senate
continued from page 1
Q: How
would you fig
ure out how to
spend the sen
ate surplus?
Chong: We’ll
figure out the
surplus based
upon what will
come into effect
next year and
the special re
quests that
come in. I’ve been told that no other
PFC member in previous years have
run for re-election, and I think
there’s some correlation between
where people don’t run again and a
lack of consistency, because they
don’t know the issues that happened
before. I want to help the programs
out so next year it will be smoother.
Q: How would you interact with
student groups?
Chong: I’ve done it for the past
year. I have a working relationship
with these groups already, so hope
fully that will continue to grow.
Q: What’s the most important
thing you feel you need to know in or
der to deal with the budget process?
Chong: The most important thing
-- there’s, like, so many things.
Some of the important things are re
viewing your past funding, and I feel
like a lot of groups didn’t want to be
punished for past leadership errors,
and so a really important thing to
keep in mind for future PFC mem
bers is explaining when we have to
keep them accountable for that.
Adrian T. Gilmore, a 25-year-old
law student, fo
cused on the tu
ition surcharge,
incidental fees
and being open
to negotiation
with students.
He said he
would ask the
administration
to pick up some
of the sur
charge, which
he said heavily affects law students.
Gilmore was able to narrow down
who is responsible for the senate Web
site to either the senate president or
vice president, and he said the most
important senate duty is ensuring fair
and equal representation.
Q: How would you figure out how
to spend the surplus?
Gilmore: Negotiating with stu
dents and student groups is the best
way to get an understanding of how
to allocate incidentals to groups.
Publications like the Emerald pro
vide good resources for understand
ing students’ needs because it’s the
voice of the students. Negotiation is
the best process — just being open
to any and all suggestions.
Q: How would you interact with
student groups?
Gilmore: Holding meetings and
just talking to people, and, like I
said, keeping up-to-date with cer
tain publications like the Emerald --
making students a part of the nego
tiation process.
Q: What is the most important
thing you should know in order to
deal with the budget process?
Gilmore: I think accountability
is an important part. Knowing
where money is going and how it is
being used. Oftentimes, problems
arise with budgets where large
amounts of money are being spent
and it’s difficult to track where it’s
going. It’s important to manage fi
nances so the budget can be spent
more efficiently.
Hargobind Khalsa, a 19-year-old
junior in the international studies
program, ran a small business at the
boarding school he attended in
Northern India and has lived in two
countries. While Khalsa did not
know who maintains the senate
Web site, he said the most impor
tant senate duty is allocating the
student fee money.
Q: How would you figure out how
to spend the surplus?
Khalsa: I would allocate based on
need, based on the past, like how
much (a group has) spent before.
But also, I’m totally not inflexible,
if a group can prove to me that
they’re going to use this money for
something that is going to benefit
the culture or the community of
the University.
Q: How will you interact with stu
dent groups?
Khalsa: That’s what I think the
real position is — someone who’d
be good at the senate is someone
who’s got a personal relationship
with all the groups.
Q: How many groups do you have
contact with right now?
Khalsa: Ten, maybe. Democrats,
Republicans, lesbian, gay, transgen
der, which always makes an inter
esting debate, Students for Peace,
Jewish students. Student groups’
work is essentially what makes the
University a community.
Q: What is the most important
thing you should know in order to
deal with the budget process?
Khalsa: Probably the rules. The
rules have definitely been somewhat
of a problem, at least over the past
year. And it’s the senators’ job —
we’re serving these groups. It’s par
tially their responsibility, but it’s also
our responsibility to educate them.
The Emerald was not able to ob
tain a photo of Khalsa by press time.
Thirty-year-old Damion Meany, a
biology and bio
chemistry dou
ble major, has
served as a U.S.
Marine, worked
as a bartender,
and as a stu
dent, once took
26 credits in
one term. He
did not know
who maintains
the senate Web
site or what the
senators’ duties are.
Q: How will you figure out how to
spend the surplus?
Meany: I would like to see some
body that has the foresight to say
well hey, you know, if we don’t need
all this money, then let’s stop taking
it from the students. OSPIRG, I
think, might very well be doing
things that are in all of our best inter
ests as students; however, in order to
get some hundred thousand dollars
of student money, they need to in
volve the students in that process.
Q: How will you interact with stu
dent groups?
Meany: In the PFG meetings, it
looks like the student groups are kind
of being rushed through procedure,
and if they understand how the bu
reaucratic procedure goes then they
can represent themselves well.
Q: What is the most important
thing you should know in order to
deal with the budget process?
Meany: I’m going to get really
deep on you here: All of us as indi
viduals have a choice to make as to
what we’re going to do with the
world we’re handed, and I think that
the vast majority of people who get
into political positions chose to fig
ure out how to work the system —
the good parts of the system and the
bad parts of the system — to their
own personal advantage. One of the
problems with the budget process is
you get people that are just thinking
in terms of this is what they want to
do with their career, so they won’t
look critically at programs.
Richard Reed, a 20-year-old
sophomore studying business with
minors in French and economics,
said he’s loved politics for as long as
he can remember. Reed said he did
not know who maintains the Web
site and had no idea what Section 5
was or what senators’ duties are.
Q: How would you figure out how
to spend the senate surplus?
Reed: The best way to do that is
to cut costs. I really am not the
biggest fan of
raising the in
cidental fees
much at all,
but hopefully
we can find
just a few more
ways every dol
lar counts.
Q: How will
you interact
with student
groups?
Reed: Face-to-face as much as
possible. I believe (this year the
PFG) had a recordly low number of
groups that didn’t get any funding,
and I think that’s in direct part due
to the communication.
Q: How many student groups do
you know right now?
Reed: Maybe 10 to 15. I'm in Delta
Sigma Phi fraternity, a greek organi
zation. Then there’s ISA , there’s the
ASA, JSA, all that. I am a big fan of
the greek system. We have a group of
greeks that are all sharing resources,
sharing contacts in order to help
each other become more involved
with the ASUO and politics in gener
al. I’d say about 15 are running.
Q: What is the most important
thing you should know in order to
deal with the budget process?
Reed: It would be what is an effi
cient use of money. I mean you’ve
got X amount of money — you can’t
go over it. If you do, you’re going to
have to start charging people more
and more money, which is, as far as
I’m concerned, not an option.
The Emerald was unable to
schedule an interview with Trevor
Sehrer by press time.
The final candidate, Thomas
Wortman, hasn’t made up his mind
on whether to stay in the race. The
20-year-old sophomore, a philoso
phy major, has worked for OSPIRG
and interned with the ASUO. He
didn’t know who maintained the
senate Web site or.what the sena
tors’ duties were.
Q: How will you figure out how to
spend the senate surplus?
Wortman: I don’t know. I’ve just
got to use my best judgment. I think
that I’d try and support those that
felt a need to be less represented.
Q: How will you interact with stu
dent groups?
Wortman: Yeah, I’m down with
student groups, I think.
Q: What is the most important
thing you should know in order to
deal with the budget process?
Wortman: Just a realistic idea
of how much funds there are and
where they’re going, and also, you
look at the programs themselves
and see if there are some pro
grams that are heads and tails
above the rest as far as productivi
ty and what they’re trying to ac
complish. I think they should get
rewarded for that.
Q: So what would sway you into
staying in the race?
Wortman: I’m just going to talk it
over with my sister and my mom.
I’m starting to play in a band, and
photography has become a very
important part of my life, sort of a
move to the arts for me, anyway,
and so I don’t know how the ASUO
is going to fit in that. It’s weird, be
cause something is kind of telling
me I should, and so that’s why I’ve
even stayed aboard this long.
The Emerald was not able to ob
tain Wortman’s photo by press time.
Contact the news editor
atbrookreinhard@dailyemerald.com.
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