Meet Cory Alpert, one of five of the candidates running for Student Body President. We found out all of Cory’s plans and visions for USC students so you can know where your candidates stand.
Major: Sociology and Russian
Hometown: Irmo, SC
Elections will be held February 16-17. Students will be able to vote here: my.sc.edu/elections and you can see other candidates here.
What changes do you feel are needed at USC?
“Among reducing the cost of attendance and improving campus unity, I think the biggest change that’s needed at the moment is introducing a spirit of action and service to student government. My campaign is about having a student government work every single day to make our university a better place. Student Government ought to be working alongside and for students to help find solutions to problems.”
Have you always been interested in student politics?
“Yes. But I’ve been interested in it from an outside perspective. My first involvement with Student Government was on Elections Commission. Although, it’s a bit of a funny story. I was put in touch with a woman named Missy Torgerson when I was a senior in high school, and she was a freshman at USC. We met up just before the semester went out, and we ended up singing No Scrubs on the Horseshoe for a few minutes. Then, the next semester, she pushed me to apply for Freshman Council, where I was fortunate enough to get an interview. However, I also applied for Elections Commission, mostly because they had an open spot, but my sister Angie was the Elections Commissioner when she was a student at USC. The Elections Commissioner at the time, Meghan Aubry, apparently told Freshman Council that she wanted me to be on the Commission, which FroCo took as saying I had accepted the position. All that being said, I ended up loving my time on the Elections Commission. It showed me that Student Government could actually mean something. That student politics can actually help students. I was able to meet so many incredible people, such as William O’Shields, who taught me how important it was to work to help other people, even if you don’t get any credit. William is one of the most selfless people I’ve ever had the fortune of knowing. I’m very fortunate to be friends with him. Also that woman who I sang No Scrubs with? She’s now my campaign manager. Perhaps I’m naive, but I tend to think that student politics don’t have to be petty or meaningless or just a bunch of political science majors trying to buy your vote. I think it can actually be an avenue for making our university a better place.”
What are some short/long term goals for you and for USC?
“For myself, I’m looking to go to grad school in sociology, where I’ll research power and legitimacy. I’m really fascinated by why people respond to power structures of any kind. After that, I’ll either jump directly into academia after a PhD, or I’ll take some time off. Either I’ll do two years with the Peace Corps or something similar, or I’ll go for a longer option with the U.S. Foreign Service, eventually ending up back in academia.
In the short term, I think we can definitely make USC a more affordable place to attend, as well as a university more closely integrated with its city. These are straightforward things that we can set in motion in a year’s time. But in the long run, we can be a university that continues to improve and adapt so that we become a stronger community every day.”
Explain a little about yourself.
“I’m the son of a professor here at USC, so I grew up on campus, which has let me have a pretty unique window into all of the moments and challenges that have made USC what it is today. I went to high school at Irmo, and while I was there, I got involved with the arts community in Columbia. I was in Trustus Theatre’s Apprentice Company, and I had the opportunity to work for a number of shows there, and I was in Grease at Town Theatre. I really fell in love with Trustus, First Thursdays, and Famously Hot New Year in particular. This past year, I was lucky enough to be one of the stage managers for Famously Hot New Year, where we had over 40,000 attendees. I’ve come to love Columbia and all that it has to offer, and I think it deserves more credit than what it gets. Beyond that, I’ve been lucky enough to spend a lot of time in Brisbane, Australia. It’s a place that I regard as my second home.”
What community service projects have you participated in?
“The single most important thing I think I’ve ever done in my time at USC was
coordinating UofSCRelief. In a single week, I led the team that coordinated thousands of volunteer hours and helped provide much-needed relief to a city in need. At the end of the day, this is what most inspired me to run for Student Body President. Because during the entire time coordinating that effort, no one asked what was in it for them or what they were getting out of it. They simply showed up and helped out however they could. To me, that’s inspiring to no end. That’s the spirit of service that I think we desperately need. The vast majority of my time last semester was taken up by UofSCRelief, even after the initial week. I was working to coordinate service trips through December, and I’m still working on projects related to flood relief in general that we’ll hopefully be announcing in the next few months.”
Why should students vote for you?
“I’ve shown my ability to lead this student body already through UofSCRelief. I’ve presented a realistic and pragmatic vision for how to move the student body forward over the next year. I’m not promising anything that I can’t achieve, and I’ve done my research on what I want to see accomplished. I’m the right candidate because I have a platform that will make USC a better place, and because I have a proven track record of getting things done.”