New USG reaches out for student involvement

At last night’s 2008 USG kickoff meeting, officers offered more than just hot chocolate and cookies to attract student attention. The USG announced the creation of several new positions, reviewed recent achievements and outlined goals for the next year to an audience of around 30 students in Frist Campus Center.

The meeting’s main purpose was to publicize the new USG-appointed positions, including seats on the Diversity Council, the Communications Committee and the Frosh-Soph Council as well as election manager positions.

“We are creating new positions and new opportunities for you to get involved and for the USG to get a lot more done,” USG president Josh Weinstein ’09 told the attendees. “We will make sure that every position in the USG is working towards an attainable goal.”

Weinstein was motivated to create the new positions largely because of personal experience working on the USG in the past, he said. Having served as USG vice president last year, Weinstein saw a number of areas in which officers’ roles could be improved.

One example is the creation of a post solely dedicated to running USG elections. “I spent three weeks every semester serving as the senior elections manager and not the vice president of the student government, which was a little strange in my mind,” he said.

Additionally, the new positions will improve the way the USG functions, Weinstein said. The Communications Committee, for example, will work to improve contact with student governments at other colleges and universities, and the Frosh-Soph Council will seek to involve more underclassmen in the USG.

“A lot of people want to get involved in USG ... and they don’t apply, for whatever reason. This Frosh-Soph Council is a really an inclusive branch of the USG that can ... serve as a way to train future leaders within the USG,” he said.

Weinstein said that he has already received around 25 applications for the new positions but that the USG is aiming to expand its candidate pool. “[We are] really trying to get into the hundreds” with applications before Sunday’s 4 p.m. deadline, he said.

At least one student at the meeting sounded ready to jump right in.

“I feel very strongly that it’s important to be involved in the campus community,” Laura Fernandez ’11 said. Fernandez plans to apply for a position on either the Social Committee or the Frosh-Soph Council.

“I decided at the beginning of the year to join all sorts of activities, and I think this is a great one to join. The USG encompasses so many aspects of campus life.”

The meeting likewise served to outline Weinstein’s goals.

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“I’m really excited for this year,” Weinstein said. Praising former USG presient Rob Biederman ’08 for “start[ing] a real change,” Weinstein said, “the USG has a very positive role and image on campus. We’re really going to push that image to improve campus life [and] the Princeton experience and get a lot of great stuff done. The idea is to get as many people involved in that as possible.”

The USG is currently working on a number of initiatives, from fixing cluster printers to providing two-ply toilet paper in bathrooms, Weinstein explained.

Other ongoing projects include launching the new Point 3.0, setting up satellite gyms around camps to alleviate the strain on Dillon Gym and working with administration officials on the opening of Campus Club next fall. Weinstein also plans to continue past projects such as Taste of Prospect, U-Bikes and USG DVD.