Campaign season is back on IU’s campus, and two candidate teams have stepped up to the plate to run for the President and Vice President positions within Indiana University Student Government. Both candidate teams agreed to interviews to give voters a better glimpse inside their campaigns before voting begins on March 1 and 2, 2022.
Here is a closer look into what Thrive for IUSG and Unite for IUSG are all about.
Thrive candidates Kyle Seibert and Bell Pastore discuss their campaign and current issues on IU’s Campus.
Thrive for IUSG is the first team running for office, composed of Kyle Seibert, a sophomore from Brookville Illinois studying Policy Analysis, and Bell Pastore, a sophomore from Indianapolis majoring in Public Management and Epidemiology. Kyle is running for President with Bell as his running mate for Vice President.
Thrive for IUSG’s campaign focuses on “using the power of our offices to listen to student voices, encourage community, and bring together diverse groups of students to tackle issues we all face,” said Kyle. Thrive’s platform focuses on three main pillars of responsibility: safety, inclusion, and well-being.
Policies Thrive wishes to adopt in terms of safety include adding more blue lights in high traffic areas on campus, implement consent and bystander training to all first year students, increase on campus transportation options, and advocate for hate crime legislation.
Thrive wishes to increase well-being on campus by working with RPS to provide healthier lunch options to students, advocate for more funding to mental health resources like CAPS, collaborate with IU to create a fossil fuel divestment plan, and invest in LED light bulbs around campus.
Thrive for IU has been endorsed by many multicultural organizations on campus to promote inclusivity, such as Raas at IU, Pacific Islander Student Organization, Jhanak at IU, and the Multicultural Greek Council Executive Board.
Unite Candidate Aidan Chism speaks for himself and on behalf of his running mate, Alida Flores, on their campaign and current issues on IU’s campus.
Unite for IUSG is composed of Aidan Chism, a Law and Public Policy major and History minor from Munster, IN, and Alida Flores, a Law and Public Policy major with a minor in Information systems from Madison, IN. If elected, Aidan would serve as the Student Body President, and Alida would serve as Vice President. Aidan represented Unite in our interview.
Unite for IUSG’s campaign utilizes three goals for the IU Community.
Safety is first- Unite wants to use preventive actions to promote campus safety.
Next is Health– Unite is committed to approaching student health and wellbeing from a holistic standpoint, because “physical and Mental health are tied together,” said Aidan.
The third goal is Sustainability– Unite is dedicated to making the IU campus greener and more sustainable for the next generation of Hoosiers.
Unite is focusing these three goals into smaller, more attainable goals that can create lasting impact at IU. Aidan Says Unite will push for IU to become more transparent with their environmental goals. Their campus goals include changing out outdated lightbulbs for LEDs,
removing single use plastics from dining halls, and expanding recycling and composting facilities throughout campus. Other notable goals for Unite include working with the IU Foundation to launch a campaign focused on lowering the cost of health resources for undergraduates and graduate students.
Unite has been endorsed by many greek organizations on campus such as Phi Sigma Kappa, Zeta Tau Alpha, Beta Theta Pi, Beta Chi Theta, Alpha Epsilon Phi, Sigma Phi Epsilon, Pi Kappa Phi, as well as the Indian Student Association, and the Asian American Association.
Regardless of which campaign seems a best fit for you, please vote in the IUSG election on March 1 and 2, 2022 on the BeInvolved website. Results will be posted later in the month.
