Luca Cassidy is a sophomore majoring in economics.
1. Tell us a bit about yourself — any clubs, hobbies or career plans for the future?
“On campus, I am the vice president of College Democrats, the chief of staff for the [vice president for student success (VPSS)] and a member of the Public Service Learning Community. I do not have much free time, but I try to make time in the day to laugh with the ones I love. For hobbies, I have a list of every book I have read since junior year of high school and each book is accompanied by a single sentence that explains what I learned from that book. After college, I want to work in nonprofits and/or government and try my best to make a difference.”
2. Why did you decide to run for this SA E-Board position?
“I ran for this position because of its purpose and its freedom to achieve that purpose. The [VPSS] aims to make sure students succeed and it can do whatever it wants to achieve that. I am not locked into any single field, like finances or clubs. I can explore every avenue. I can help the [vice president for finance (VPF)] reform the grant system, work with the [executive vice president (EVP)] to increase club membership or create a new branch of classes that encourage local community involvement. I have no restrictions. I can help everyone in every way possible.”
3. What is your platform?
“My general platform involves my three A’s— Accessibility, Active Learning and A Fun Time. I want to increase access to the SA through events, make our campus more accessible to students with disabilities and increase access to sexual health products. Half of education is what happens outside the classroom, so I want more students in clubs, classes that happen outside the classroom and more students in the community. Lastly, I want students to enjoy college with more events, better food and fantastic mental health resources.”
4. Why should students vote for you?
“I have experience, which is important, but my passion is why students should vote for me. I love working in SA. It is disturbingly stressful, but nothing gets me more excited than when a student asks me for help and I get to brainstorm solutions. For example, a student once noted that the accessible blue buttons are notoriously broken and so I reached out to [Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD)] and now we, in collaboration with Physical Facilities, are about to pilot a solution. This is what I want to do for the rest of my life — help people and improve their lives.”