Photo courtesy of Layton McLaughin ’19
BY ADIA MCLAUGHLIN, CANDIDATE FOR STUDENT-BODY VICE PRESIDENT
Our organizational outreach, platform and dedication to transparency make us, Camden Layton and Adia McLaughlin, the perfect choice for Student Body President and Vice President.
Camden and I are two out of state students looking to make our mark and leave our legacy in a Virginia town. Within our first year at Mason, we joined over 10 clubs combined and looked to make as many connections as possible. Little did we know two years into our collegiate careers our paths would cross, and our motivation to make everyone fall in love with Mason in the same way we did our junior years of high school would become our most driven passion.
We are running to be your Student Body President and Vice President because if we are given the chance to represent the Mason student body, we will continue to advocate for the awareness of scholarships, facilities and university updates to ensure that every student is notified of all the opportunities available to them here on our campus.
A lot of people may ask why we’re running, and it’s a simple answer. We believe that the school has been waiting for a duo like us: two civically engaged students who are not your typical politicians. We are not solely running because we think Mason is great. We are running because we want to help Mason grow.
We also see where Mason has fallen short, and are more than willing to recognize and work to improve it. We are not in this for ourselves. We want to see the student representation at Mason with the administration grow. As strong advocates for transparency, we believe it is pertinent that students take charge of their school again and use the resources that this university has provided for us.
Just a few of the initiatives we want to start include campus-wide Title IX Reform. We would love to continue the work that the current administration is doing in creating a Title IX Undersecretary that would work closely with the university administration. Student interaction with that office should not be a daunting test. And with new leadership on Student Government’s end as well as in their office, we have an opportunity to iron out the wrinkles surrounding student support provided by them.
Another relationship we see growing is campus life and university facilities. We want to bridge the gap between offices, including Mason Police Department and Mason Recreation. These are offices students know about, but might not always have the most pleasant experiences with. As representatives of Mason we would strive to listen to not only student’s needs, but their wants and do what we could to fulfill both regarding interaction with staff as well as the departments as a whole.
We want students to take charge of our school again. We will continue to have open office hours with representatives at least once a week for university departments, including the Housing office, Parking and Transportation, Office of Sustainability, the Office of the Provost, Counseling and Psychological Services and more.
We also will have open office hours ourselves where students can air out their grievances to us directly as well. A Student Body President and Vice President are there to represent the student body, and need to reflect the thoughts of those they represent. You have a choice to pick who represents your voice, and we believe we are the right ones.
If you have any questions for us, or want to learn even more about our plans for Mason, be sure to follow our social media (@LM4Mason19) and reach out, as we would love to hear from you. We are for progress with purpose, and that means advocating for purposeful change. Students are the purpose of this institution, and therefore the purpose behind our charge.
