Get to know 2014 debate National Champion, freshmen, CLEG major and American’s Senator for the Campus at Large, Will Mascaro.
After earning the spot of #1 debater in the country, Mascaro produced a dynamic platform that won him over 400 votes in AUSG’s recent election. From demanding better quality of food on campus and that your meal swipes actually equal a bagel and coffee at Einstein’s, to promoting the rights of AU students who are making below minimum wage at their campus jobs, Mascaro already has huge plans for this school year.
Her Campus American University: What exactly is your job?
Will Mascaro: A senator who is doing their job well does two things – listens to the concerns brought to them by students, and then acts on them. And the way you can act on them is by passing a resolution or by passing a bill that acknowledges concerns you’ve heard from students, and then provides a solution to solve for those concerns.
HCAU: What made you want to assume that position?
WM: When I came to school in August, I met someone who was in Student Government who, just by chance, told to me that on that day it was the last day they were accepting applications to be appointed as a senator. Over the summer a lot of the senators who are older end up resigning because they’re going to be doing something abroad or not going to be able to serve, so there were going to be some vacancies. I applied for one of those positions and was chosen to be one of the senators at large. Which means I serve for the entire student body, all undergrad, so I thought that was really cool. When the elections came up, I asked myself if I should run for class of 2018 and just represent freshmen or should I continue at large and represent the entire student body. I felt that the issues that I care about most, and the issues that I campaigned on, are issues that affect all students, regardless of what grade they’re in, equally.
HCAU: What are some of those issues that you feel affect all AU undergrads?
WM: I’ve narrowed it down to three big things. The first thing is better sexual assault prevention. The issue of food, in general, is problematic. And lastly, is the issue of student rights.
HCAU: What are you goals for this year?
WM: As a student, I’d like to not be kicked out. I’d like to get 30 credits this year so I can graduate on time. Really simple, like, humble goals. In terms of being a senator, I’d like to keep all the promises I’ve made, and most importantly, to always be willing to set aside my own goals to advance the goals of the entire student body. The three ideas I just talked about are three ideas of mine. I needed to have some ideas so that people would know that I had a substantive platform to run on. But what is more important to me is to make sure that the concerns that are being heard, the problems that are being solved, aren’t my problems, but the student body’s problems. The best thing I can do as a senator is to always be representing the voices, and ideas, and concerns of the student body. My goal for the end of this year will be to have solved as many of the problems that I feel the students are facing, or that the students think they are facing, as possible.
HCAU: How can students reach out to you?
WM: You can friend me on Facebook, you can email at wm2097a@american.edu, and you can also come to my office hours, which are in MGC 262 on Tuesdays from 3-4 pm. I’m always there, and senate meetings are on Sundays at 1. Sometimes they go long, but they are open to the public. And every member of the public has the opportunity to speak twice at these meetings, once at the beginning and once at the end, so I really encourage it. I would love to see more members of the public come, and it’s your right to come.
HCAU: Has politics been something you’ve always been interested in? If so, is it something you see yourself doing as a career?
WM: I do think I want to get involved in politics. Politics is my love. Some people spend their Sunday nights watching football; I like to TiVo the prime minister’s question time, or watch congress on CSPAN. I do think I’ll eventually be involved in politics, but not until I’ve had a regular job, in the private sector, and I’m not working for the government when I’m paying my taxes, so I know what it feels like to be a regular American working a typical job, and not some government bureaucrat.I think a lot of times we elect people who are career politicians, who have never had real jobs, who have only served in public office, and they don’t know what it’s like to struggle. So I really want to get a regular job, get that experience, so that when I do run, I know what its like to be the people who are voting for me, the people that I’m representing.
In terms of past experience, I think at this point in my political life, I would consider myself Independent. But, I’ve had political experience on both sides of the aisle. I got to intern for Cleveland’s Democratic mayor, which I loved. I also got to intern with a Republican congressman from Ohio, who has a contingency that is partially in inner city Cleveland. So I got experiences from both sides of the aisle, I loved both of them, and it really opened my eyes to the fact, that at the end of the day, Republican or Democrat, I think all good politicians are simply Americans trying to help other Americans.