Student Government Association presidential candidate Mia Delamar and vice presidential candidate Jennifer O’Brien want to set a new standard for open communication between students and their SGA representatives.
“Our entire basis for this campaign is just really being connected to the students and being as transparent as we possibly can,” Delamar said. “We are just like you guys, and we really care. Your Belmont experience affects us as well, because it’s also our Belmont experience.”
On Wednesday, O’Brien posted a survey via Google Drive to the Belmont University Student Community Facebook group, asking students to voice one thing about the university that they would like to see change.
“We want to genuinely hear what students have to say,” O’Brien said. “If elected, Mia and I want to engage with each student who fills that Drive out and say to them ‘Okay, is this something you want to act on?’ We want to do what students want to do.”
Both Delamar and O’Brien have been involved with SGA for years now, and they have experience both leading and interacting with parts of the Belmont community.
“I started SGA when I was a freshman. I was the chair of policy review for two years, then I became the parliamentarian. I want to serve in a bigger capacity,” Delamar said. “I think the next place to serve from that would be president.”
“When Mia and I both joined we were both just congresswomen and then we both became chairs of different things; last year, I led the Campus Outreach and Events committee,” O’Brien said. “You either stay in senate or you take that next step.”
With cooperation being a major facet of their message to students, it is no surprise that Delamar and O’Brien value the rapport they have established as colleagues and as friends.
“The way that we work together is very efficient, but we are also very conscious of each other. I think that’s why we’re running together,” O’Brien said. “We don’t just want to get things done — we vibe with each other, for lack of a better way of saying it.”
“I think our communication is one of the strongest points I’ve seen,” Delemar agreed. “That’s why we chose each other.”
More than anything, Delamar and O’Brien want to emphasize the value of the individual student’s ability to make change happen.
“We’re excited about what this could potentially be,” O’Brien said. “There’s so much change that can happen at Belmont.”
Voting for SGA president and vice president will be open on BruinLink from Feb. 6-8.
The Vision will be holding an informal debate with the presidential and vice presidential candidates on Monday. Students can submit questions for the debate to belmontvisionnews@gmail.com.
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This article written by Justin Wagner. Photo courtesy of the Delamar/O’Brien campaign