Staff Editorial: Lawrence University Community Council Elections

This Friday, January 18, Lawrentians are invited to vote for LUCC’s next president and vice president. Elections will be held in the Warch Campus Center from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Alexander Gymnasium from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m., and the Conservatory from 1 to 5 p.m. We at The Lawrentian hope that every student and faculty member takes the time to make their voice heard and helps to elect new members to our campus’s shared governance council. Below, we have included personal statements from each of the candidates.

 

Presidential candidates:

 

Maria Poimenidou

“Hello Lawrentians! My name is Maria Poimenidou and I am running for LUCC president! Over the last three years, my involvement at Lawrence has allowed me to participate in a notable range of groups and organizations giving me the opportunity to hear out students from each corner of campus and help voice their concerns. I have been in LUCC long enough to know how things run and to know the path we have been on, and with me as your president we will continue the great work that has been done and full-heartedly commit to addressing pressing issues that our Lawrence Community is facing. LUCC needs to continue being that medium where various, unique problems of our campus are met with diligence, expertise and heart and together we can achieve that.”

 

Ghania Imran

“I’m Ghania Imran, currently Class Rep of 2021, I am motivated to run as President because I have a passion to lead and unite our student body. I am steadfast in decision making, accountable, assigning and completing tasks, working with others, and having an open mind to new ideas and perspectives. To me, being president means having an impactful voice from my walk of life as a South Asian Muslim woman and being able to have many other voices heard which are often ignored or overlooked. I am here to empower you and work together to gravitate towards making Lawrence a better place for all of us. I will support our community’s requests and visions. I will work on integration and diversity affairs, Title IX affairs, the representation and equity of underrepresented groups such as low-income students, LGBTQ+ students, students of color, womxn students, and international students. I will also strongly support our committees on the council to support all our students in the conservatory, athletes, and students in all the other disciplines. Lawrentians are the leaders of this community and with your help we can make our school a better place by addressing issues and working towards a solution.”

 

Vice presidential candidate:

 

Ngan Nguyen

“My name is Ngân Nguyễn, I’m an international Junior from Vietnam. I’m running for LUCC Vice President because I believe I have both the experiences and the passion to serve the Lawrence community. I’m the President of Lawrence Asian Diaspora Alliance, 2nd year CORE leader, 2-time elected Class Representative. During my years in Lawrence, I’ve had the opportunities to be active in different spaces that strive to educate, promote diversity and advocate for marginalized identities on campus. I believe in two things: laugher and positivity can bring people together; and change for the better is inevitable when we can find a common goal and work together to reach that goal. My goals are to focus on the student body’s well-being. No one should feel that their education is compromised because their mental health is put at risk and/or they don’t have resources necessary to ensure their success. I also want to encourage conversations and actions to bridge the gap and foster understanding between students, staff, faculty and the administration on multiple issues. I especially want to further the efforts to support POC, marginalized students, the staff, and the faculty to ensure a safer, healthier, and better Lawrence.”

 

Get out there and vote, Lawrentians!