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Students will cast their votes this week for the Associated Students of Colorado State University election. Therefore, it’s important to get to know the candidates and understand their campaigns.
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Cinque Mason and Lydia Zuklic are running for president and vice president of ASCSU, respectively, and their campaign promises to make crucial changes to improve students’ experiences on campus. Despite their promises, they’re overlooking the little changes that could be made and are shooting for the larger issues on campus, setting the voters up for disappointment.
Compared to other candidates, Mason and Zuklic feel the most like students. During the debates, they both seemed comfortable answering questions under pressure, and they were able to bridge that gap between average students and ASCSU, which often feels inaccessible.
Their campaign slogan, “rethink our potential,” describes the team’s forward-thinking goals for CSU’s future. These goals include prioritizing sustainability, addressing the U+2 law in Fort Collins and organizing student events while paying attention to COVID-19 safety guidelines, to “reclaim the lost year.”
Mason and Zuklic’s plan to address the future of sustainability on campus might be their most ambitious goal. Their solution? “Planting” BioUrban trees on campus. These artificial trees work with micro algae to absorb pollution and release clean air. In addition to the BioUrban trees, Mason and Zuklic plan on eliminating single-use plastic on campus and coordinate with the University’s dining halls to save wasted food and redistribute it to students struggling with food insecurity.
Sustainability is a long-held value at CSU; one for which, it has received a record number of awards, making it one of the leading institutions in sustainability across the country.
Addressing and overturning the U+2 occupancy law is also on the agenda in Mason and Zuklic’s campaign.
U+2 does not just impact students, it impacts the entire community in Fort Collins. It is not a rule created by the University to continue to uphold high rent occupancy and reduce crowding, it is a Citywide mandate. Ideally, they really could make a difference and be the final push needed to overturn this law, but those before them have stumbled and the City shows no sign of changing.
Their campaign plan to organize student events to “reclaim the lost year” could be controversial. The duo wants to continue CSU’s fall concert tradition, which was postponed due to the pandemic, as well as host the Undie Run, which they plan to make safer and more charity-oriented.
The Undie Run is an event with the intention of donating clothes to the homeless but is often scrutinized because of poor organization and concerns about sexual harassment and property damage.
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This is definitely a way to reach a potentially new voter pool on campus, but the concerns of faculty and students about the event are not without merit. Per year it ran, the Undie Run cost CSU an average of $150,000 due to the damage and trash left in the wake of the onslaught of naked college students.
“The thing about the Undie Run is that it’s going to happen,” Mason said during the live presidential debate. “The power of social media is quite immense. The best way to reverse the damages done by the Undie Run is to sanction it. … This is a tradition within the hearts of students, so we’re advocating for that passion.”
Social media is a huge part of campaigning for ASCSU, and Mason and Zuklic maintained a formal online presence, and Zuklic spoke briefly during the vice presidential debate on the importance of social media.
While the idea of hosting events to boost morale is nice, the team has huge obstacles to get over in planning as well as maintaining the safety of students, and this could potentially set voters up for disappointment.
All of these obstacles are hard to overcome, but Mason and Zuklic seem prepared to do it. As a team, they have the energy needed to reach the average CSU student and get them involved in ASCSU politics, and their calm nature is reassuring.
Voting is open March 30-April 1 on RAMweb.
Bella Eckburg can be reached at letters@collegian.com or on Twitter @yaycolor.
