Over half of the Pomona student body voted in the Associated Students of Pomona College Senate elections April 2 and 3, naming Sarah Appelbaum PO ’13 president.
Faye Wang PO ’13 will be the new vice president of finance, and Joseph Reynolds PO ’15 will be the vice president of campus activities.
“I think my primary goal is to make sure that Senate feels relevant to students’ lives, that all Pomona students feel like they have a place in Senate and know that they’re able to voice their concerns, their hopes and the things they’d like to see happen on campus,” said Appelbaum, who is currently the commissioner of community relations. “For me, it’s really going to be about having lots of conversations with different groups on campus to get an idea of what it is that the students want.”
In particular, Appelbaum said that she hopes to foster new connections between campus groups and the Senate.
“I think it’s important for there to be more communication between Senate and different resource centers, support groups, activist organizations. I think historically those connections have not been there, so that’s something that I hope would be with all students, having them feel like Senate is interested in what they’re doing and connected with them,” she said.
Wang called the new Senate “a good group of people” whose varied opinions are “fairly representative of the different views on campus.”
“I’m excited to be working on ASPC,” she said. “Someone of my politics is not usually in the VP of Finance position—I’m a little more progressive. I think there’s really good work to be done.”
Reynolds said his plans include creating a weekly campus events e-mail and increasing the number of Friday events and performances.
This year’s short campaign period saw an unusually high number of public endorsements made by students and student organizations. The Claremont Progressive, for example, created a flyer that featured endorsements for each position. Ian Gallogly PO ’13, the new trustee finance committee representative, sent an e-mail to the student body endorsing Appelbaum as part of his own campaign.
Current ASPC President Nate Brown PO ’12 was optimistic about the endorsements’ potential to generate student interest in ASPC elections but was worried that it would discourage students from researching on the candidates themselves.
“A lot of students seem to be talking about them,” he said. “I think it increases voter turnout and awareness on the elections and that’s a good thing. At the same time, I worry it causes people to be lazy and not research the candidates themselves. Generally speaking, though, I’m in favor, since it gets people talking.”
“I think endorsements are a way for people to feel like they have more of a stake in the election,” Appelbaum said. “Especially for endorsements from groups as opposed to individuals, that’s a way for groups that have some particular values to petition for those values to be reflected in the Senate. I feel really happy and honored that students took the time to endorse me and to endorse other candidates.”
Some students were surprised to discover that Appelbaum’s competitor, Rishi Sangani PO ’15, was a first-year. The president is usually a senior.
Reynolds said he thinks it is beneficial to have younger students take on larger roles in the Senate.
“I think it shakes up the rhythm and routine that people have fallen into in thinking that a leader needs to be someone who’s been here forever,” he said. “If you look at it from the mindset of what a freshman has done in the past, experience-wise and involvement-wise, and what they’re willing to do, then it makes sense for them to run.”
The new senators have some time to think about projects they want to initiate when they take office in the fall.
“Someone did suggest that I use all the money for puppies, but I don’t think I’ll be doing that,” Wang said.
Complete Results:
President: Sarah Appelbaum PO ’13
Vice President for Finance: Faye Wang PO ’13
Vice President for Campus Activities: Joseph Reynolds PO ’15
Commissioner of Academic Affairs: Quinn Lester PO ’13
Commissioner of Clubs and Sports: Emma Wolfarth PO ’14
Commissioner of Communications: Jesse Pollack PO ’15
Commissioner of Community Relations: Darrell Jones III PO ’14
Commissioner of Environmental Affairs: Lena Connor PO ’13
Commissioner of Off-Campus Relations: Ryan Dodson PO ’15
Student Affairs Committee At-Large Representative: Emi Young PO ’13
Academic Affairs Committee At-Large Representative: Diane Northern PO ’13
Trustee Finance Committee At-Large Representative: Ian Gallogly PO ’13