Third year International Relations and Psychology double major Rebecca Sterling, candidate for ASUCD Executive President, believes that ASUCD elections are not about power or politics, but about being a proud Aggie. “This election is about caring for Davis and wanting to have the best UC to leave behind, to come back to visit, and to be proud of,” she said.
Rebecca’s resume speaks for itself. As the current VP of Membership for Delta Delta Delta, Chair of ASUCD Student Police Relations, member of the Justice Reynoso Task force, as well as former ASUCD Senator, Rebecca has a myriad of experiences under her belt. Some of her proudest accomplishments come from her time as a senator where some of her responsibilities included: “[finding] stabilized funding for Safeboats, saving Picnic Day from being disbanded, establishing a student police relations program, creating a funding and resource manual for student organizations, expanding composting to off campus student organizations, and working to improve many of the ASUCD units.”
Experience aside, Rebecca has been on both sides of the playing field as both a student and a student leader. “I am a good candidate for ASUCD President because I have experience but I have not been involved with ASUCD since I arrived here… I know what it’s like to not be involved and how ASUCD could be failing to reach out,” she said. “I am enthusiastic, driven, level-headed, and care deeply about making decisions that are in the best interest of our campus. Many candidates in the past are either consumed by ASUCD and don’t have much perspective elsewhere, or they lack experience – I think I fall at the happy medium. I am not jaded, but I am not naive.”
As President, Rebecca’s principal focus would be to empower every Aggie to stand up and be a leader. “I don’t [necessarily] mean leaders under student government, I mean that every student should be a leader in having the student voice heard – and ASUCD should be at the forefront of making that happen,” she explained. She and Yena Bae, her running mate, plan to tackle this by increasing and enhancing the lines of communication between students and administration, officials, and community members. “We want to have students in Mrak Hall guiding administrative decisions, to bring them to their legislators’ offices in Sacramento, and to have them have meals with community members to bridge the gap and increase understanding between students and city members,” she said. “This is unique because there tends to be a trend to look at specific groups on campus, or look at state-wide issues, but Yena and I are honing in on the key City of Davis and UC Davis issues that are influencing our student body today, and if are not addressed, would be detrimental to Aggies to come.”
Furthermore, she believes in preserving the sanctity of traditions that are so characteristic to UC Davis as well as the sanctity of public education. “We need to do work to make sure our traditions, like Picinic Day, aren’t lost,” Rebecca conveyed. “We also need to work to make sure our education remains affordable and accessible. I am prepared to dedicate myself [to this goal] and lead with passion and determination.”
If elected, Rebecca hopes to leave behind a legacy in the mentality that ASUCD is an advocate for the students at UC Davis. “I hope to leave behind a student body that feels more engaged, does not feel targeted by the city, and feels proud to be an Aggie by protecting and introducing more student services and resources,” she said.
Rebecca stresses the importance of reaching out to all groups on campus. “Campaigning has been going really well,” she enthused. “It’s really fun getting to meet so many people and pushing myself outside of my group of friends. Davis is really an incredible place. Yena and I are trying to target anyone and everyone – we are reaching out to every group because in office we would truly hope to represent every student.”
Get out there and vote Aggies! Elections are Febuary 21st to the 23rd atwww.elections.ucdavis.edu. Have any questions or concerns for Rebecca? Email her at rgsterling@ucdavis.edu.