Name: Noah Sawicki
Originally from: L.A.
On campus position: Sophomore class senator
When and why did you decide to get involved with ASUP?
I first joined ASUP the October of my freshman year as the Fields Hall senator. When I made the decision to petition in, my goals were to represent the ladies in Fields by giving them a voice in senate, and to promote ASUP and make it a wider known organization on campus. It also seemed like a great way to get involved and network with other students, faculty, and other members of the UP community.
How has your position affected your year so far? Any new opportunities that you would not have without ASUP?
Instead of returning as the Fields Hall senator, I ran and was elected the Sophomore class senator for the 2015-2016 academic year. This is going to be very exciting time for ASUP with the new senate and Executive Board, and we are expecting a lot of new changes as a group this year. Being a part of senate has definitely allowed me to branch out in service and meet with individuals from different organizations and outreach programs like REX (Religious Experience with Extraordinary People) and participate in the Green Dot Action Team on campus.
Do you have any plans or ideas for future improvements for the UP community?
As of right now, my plans for ASUP is to continue spreading awareness of the group and knowledge of what we do on campus and for students. As of right now, one of our biggest goals as a senate is to make ASUP and its representatives more approachable on campus by changing the attire of our traditional polos to sleek V-necks, and attending more campus and sporting events where people can see us as a group. Our main job is to work for the student body, not only in taking in reports from our constituents in ways to improve campus, but also sharing information about events, programs, services, and upcoming news in the UP community.
What are you most excited for as a Senator?
The thing I am most excited about as a senator is working with a large constituency of my peers in the sophomore class, and meeting new people as a result of it. Also, the changes the Executive Board plans to implement will be very exciting to be a part of.
Do you have any advice or encouragement for someone who is potentially interested in joining ASUP in the future?
I say to check it out! All of our meetings are open to visitors and those who are want to sit in on the meetings. If you are interested, we meet in St. Mary’s Lounge every Monday at 4:30 pm. There are also ways to test out being a senator, like acting as a proxy for a representative who is unable to attend that week’s meeting. If anyone is interested in the application process and petitioning in, I highly recommend emailing Secretary Joseph Rojo at rojo17@up.edu. My last tip is not to let a less than satisfactory year on ASUP deter you from running as a representative, because every senate and Executive Board is different, and with the new school year brings new changes and people.