If there is one concern I’ve heard from students about the Student Government
Association (SGA) throughout my four years at Northeastern, it is by far a concern about
how confusing it is to understand, or a concern for how much work is done that
is actually a benefit to students. Personally, being a part of multiple projects on
campus that have had direct implications on my friends and colleagues, I find this
disappointing. However, the problem of getting information about what we do and
how we do it sometimes poses as a more difficult task than getting the library open
24/7 or changing the number of points at Outtakes to eight per meal swipe.

It’s time to think of some innovative ways to not only help students understand
what SGA does in all of our meetings, but to start giving a voice to every student on
this campus. I think Terry MacCormack can do that for our campus in the position
of Executive Vice President. One of his main topics he wants to address in the
position is conversations. It’s definitely time to expand our outreach to students
from large barbeques and surveys of thousands of students to small events and
individual conversations where students can get to know our senators directly.
Hopefully these more direct conversations can help to start stripping away the cloud
of mystery from the SGA.

In order to have these conversations, I think it is important to know whom you
are talking to. If I could describe Terry in one word, I would say approachable. As
Chief of Staff in Senate this year, he worked with the current EVP to run “Welcome
to Senate Meetings.” As one of the first faces new senators met in the Association,
he was certainly a role model and a friendly face to talk to while the new members
found their bearings. If I were given the opportunity to use a second word, it would
be hardworking. There are few people in this world that I know personally who
would bend over backwards to help a person, whether it was a friend or a complete
stranger. Having seen Terry do this multiple times confirms he is one of the few.
Before taking the position of Chief of Staff, Terry also knew very little about website
design. In preparation for the position, I watched him teach himself how to work on
website maintenance throughout his summer break, and by fall he was prepared to
manage the SGA website with ease. This is one of many examples of his work ethic.

I hope that the entire Northeastern community will consider a vote for Terry during
these upcoming elections. Have a concern you want addressed? Search Facebook
for Tapping Your Influence, and you’ll find Terry’s page. Post your conversation
starter, and we can begin to engage the campus in conversations like never before.
If you want to get more involved, or you want to read more about his campaign,
visit www.terrymaccormack.com. If you want to learn more about voting, visit
www.sga.neu.edu. Voting starts March 26, so since class registration for the fall is
at the same time, I hope all of the Northeastern community can take some time to fill
out the ballot while you are on myNEU. My good wishes go out to all involved with
the student body elections this year, and let the games begin.

– Ashley Caron is a junior psychology major, an SGA senator and member of Terry’s campaign team.