Representatives were officially sworn in on April 7 and can work on the legislation that their campaigns addressed. The Daily Texan spoke with some of the fresh faces of SG and discussed their legislative goals.
Last session, Avey Gannaway could not vote on legislation as a clerk for the 119th SG assembly. Now a representative for the Moody College of Communication, Gannaway said she wants to move legislation she authored last assembly to a vote, along with making the assembly meeting minutes and notes more accessible to the public.
“I really want to help accommodate to the representatives and make sure … we’re not being a performative organization, (and) we’re actually getting things done,” Gannaway said.
Chemical engineering freshman Knox Visnak, a representative for the Cockrell School of Engineering, said the difficulty of STEM classes and their early class times can negatively affect her constituents’ mental health, so she wants to work with the University administration to address this.
Architectural engineering sophomore James Penver said he’s interested in working on free speech legislation as an engineering representative. He hopes to build transparency between SG, UT administration and engineering students, he said.
Appointed as a representative for the College of Fine Arts, Dash Kostka, a music education senior, said he took the position after being concerned with the decisions the last SG assembly made, such as removing ranked choice voting. He wants to address issues the Longhorn Band faces with their practice facilities and help tackle University-wide issues, he said.
“I want to make sure that the athletic department gives an assurance to the marching band that … the band will have an adequate artificial football field with proper football market field markings to practice, that’s on campus and (within) walking distance,” Kostka said.
Nick Escue and Rushan Orakzai, both representatives for the College of Liberal Arts, said students are concerned with transparency and the consolidation of seven ethnic, gender and area studies departments within the college. Escue, a government junior, said legislation has been drafted by this assembly to address consolidation.
Orakzai, a government junior, said he wants to focus on how the consolidation will impact students within the affected departments.
“I definitely want to look into passing some (legislation) that strengthens our degree audit system and makes it clear advising-wise, and gives more resources to those students who are affected by consolidation,” Orakzai said.
Hasita Karthikeyan and Baylen Brezina, both representatives of the College of Natural Sciences, said while campaigning, they engaged with constituents and aimed to explain SG’s operations.
Brezina, a biology sophomore, said many of his friends did not even know UT had a student government, so he hopes to bring awareness to the organization. As pre-med students, both said they want to create more support for students on the same track.
“STEM courses can be a lot of work,” said Karthikeyan, a neuroscience sophomore. “We want to support students and make sure they have resources that are available to them and continue to expand those resources.”
Brianna Lagunas, a representative for the School of Nursing, said after conversations with her peers, she realized the school of around 400 undergraduates needed more immediate advocacy. Specifically, she said cost transparency for classes is a big issue nursing students face.
“A lot of students are scared to ask for help, or there is no help at all,” said Lagunas, a junior nursing major. “If we can have transparency, first and foremost, and … financial support, that would help students to feel supported in that major, to see that struggle and say, ‘I am not alone in this.’”
