Associated Students, Inc. (ASI) forged strong connections with the student body through a record number of events and a revamp of social media outreach throughout fall quarter, according to ASI President
Jana Colombini.
During the first few months of Colombini’s presidency, ASI hosted several new events, including the Sustainability Fest. They also hosted the “Flex Your Right” voter registration drive again. According to Colombini, the campaign resulted in a record number of newly registered student voters, surpassing that of Stanford University and all other California State Universities (CSU).
“We had a little over 2,000 [people registered to vote], other CSU’s would have 700,” agricultural sciences senior Colombini said. “We were almost just an outlier, so that was a huge success.”
Colombini also made efforts to increase the accessibility of ASI for students, particularly with the creation of the ASI President Snapchat. Colombini also introduced her open office hours, during which students could approach Colombini with ideas, concerns and general input to guide future ASI decisions.
“Care, Communicate, Connect,” are the guiding principles for Colombini’s agenda, which focuses on increasing transparency between ASI and the student body, as well as with the San Luis Obispo community.
“We have been attending city council meetings regularly and communicating with city council members in general,” Colombini said.
Colombini’s other visions have begun to materialize as the winter quarter begins. The recent passage of an ASI resolution to limit candidates’ campaign spending to $2,000 in future ASI elections, removing the filing fee — a safety deposit collected from candidates to ensure fair campaign practices— and digitizing applications marks several milestones for ASI.
Prior to the resolution, there was no cap on campaign spending, so “that was a leap for ASI,”
Colombini said.
The resolution ultimately aims to reduce barriers to running for an elected position within ASI, encouraging all interested students to participate.
At the Community Forum for Budget Priorities on Jan. 3, Colombini advocated for a portion of the city’s budget to be allocated toward the installation of more street lights in off-campus areas close to Cal Poly. Students have the opportunity to demonstrate their support for this measure via an (online voting platform).
“Because we have such inconvenient on-campus parking, students have done a respectful deed to walk [or bike] to campus. When they go to walk home, it’s absurdly dark, especially now that it’s winter,” Colombini said. “To me, it’s such an injustice that the city doesn’t already assume that [lighting] should be a major goal of the budget.”
Along with solving this student concern, Colombini and her staff hope to make a number of ambitions a reality this quarter.
“We’ve put all the visions and goals [on paper] that by the end of the year, if all of this is done, I would know that I was a successful ASI President; with campaigning I talked the talk, and throughout the term, walked the walk,” Colombini said. “I want to make sure people knew what they voted for when they voted for me.”