USG candidates discuss visibilty

By DARYL LANG
Collegian Staff Writer

Undergraduate Student Government candidates work hard to make themselves visible during elections, but making USG visible and accessible to students is a year-round struggle.

Candidates for USG president explained what USG can do to become more visible and accessible to students.

"One way to improve visibility is tangible results in the lives of everyday students," Casagrande said.

Casagrande suggested one way to improve interaction with students is to move USG members' office hours of from second floor of the HUB to the HUB Cellar.

Mario Ciabarra and Allison Szabaga

"Currently, the visibility of USG is very poor," Ciabarra said. "Nobody really wants to get involved in an organization that nobody's talking about."

Ciabarra said USG needs to hold more meetings with students to determine what USG should do.

Todd Krout and Karen Skomorucha

"There's been some talk by student organizations that USG hides on the second floor (of the HUB), and I tend to agree with that," Krout said.

Because many students don't know what resources USG can offer them, Krout said, USG should work to reach more student organizations, and provide them with information such as phone numbers of University departments.

Roshani Herath and Christine Muchi

"In the past, it might have been hard for students to see what USG is doing," but new programs like the Outreach Committee and the bi-weekly column in The Daily Collegian are helping, Herath said.

USG should co-sponsor more events and work on partnerships with other student organizations, Herath added.

Rocco Impreveduto and Marc Nathan

"With more student involvement will come more variety in the long run, and that can only be beneficial," Impreveduto said.

USG should approach incoming students at freshman orientation programs to let them know what USG does, Impreveduto said.

Andrea Prinzi and J. P. Jaworski

"USG executive members and members of all branches should be communicating not just with student organizations, but with students in general," Prinzi said.

To welcome new members, USG should do more than just participate in the involvement fairs twice a year, Prinzi said.

Kornelius P. Spankum and Kendra Ciesla

"USG is very visible, I think," Ciesla said. "Everybody knows about it. Everybody's got a nickname for it, and it's usually not 'Undergraduate Student Government.' "

Many students find the organization intimidating, and USG offers very little interaction with students unless they want to buy bus tickets, Ciesla said.