Sure, Mom and Dad always taught to “follow your dreams,” but here’s one girl who is really going after her passion for politics. Hannah Ehrenberg’s ultimate goal is to follow in the footsteps of her grandfather and become a judge. Her first step toward that has been her election to the vice presidency of the University of Illinois Student Senate twice in the past two years. Ehrenberg is currently running for trustee.
According to illini4hannah.com, Ehrenberg defines her role as Student Trustee as “[being] responsible for advocating the needs and interests of the Student Body to the University Board of Trustees.” She’s basically been involved since she stepped foot on campus. Even better? She’s the first female in the past 10 years to be on the ballot! As the trustee has the most power in the Student Senate, Hannah looks forward to participating in board meetings and voicing her own opinions, such as making the graduation diplomas of all University of Illinois campuses unique.
Stated in her official stance, “…The Student Trustee represents our campus and the voice of the student body on the Board of Trustees. One issue that may come before the board next year is an initiative to unify degrees between University of Illinois campuses so that the location where a degree is earned will be identical for all schools. As trustee of the Urbana-Champaign campus I will make it clear to the Board and the University Administration that our degrees must be kept distinct. In addition to keeping our diplomas unique, I will stress the safety concerns of students and push for more lighting and an expansion of the Safe Rides boundaries. “
She’s already made a huge difference by getting the SafeRide phone number on the back of all new iCards! And to top it all off, as the youngest elected president of her service fraternity Alpha Phi Omega, they’ve become the largest chapter in the nation! Hannah has decided not to specify her political party in hopes to satisfy most students. Hannah has been in close correlation with the current trustee to receive tips on her candidacy. Although campaigning can be an exhausting process that seriously cuts into her social and academic life, Hannah hopes to have a leg up on her opponents as she’s been voicing her opinions to frats and sororities in an effort to win some Greek votes, as well as speaking to James Scholars and other scholarly clubs on campus. Help spread the word about Hannah- let’s show ‘em some girl power!