It’s a Saturday afternoon and Jonathan Abboud wears a light blazer and a blue button-up woven. He looks just like a president. But the clean cut, classic California style is just the surface to our Associated Student president. I had the opportunity to chat with Jonathan and to learn more about his leadership roles on campus. During our interview, several students stopped to say, “Hey Mister President!”
What accomplishment are you most proud of?
Making it through UCSB and surviving. It’s been really hard to stay in school, to make it through alive. My friends and I had our fair share of trials and tribulations here. Even a year ago, I didn’t think I’d make it this far.
How have you seen UCSB and Isla Vista change over the years?
A big part of the change I’ve seen is the attitude of the students who come in. It seems like the students, the younger students, don’t party as much. When I was a freshman, we were really social, went out, and held leadership positions. Now it seems like you can only pick two of the three. Isla Vista seems to be a lot more tame than it use to be; it’s not as crowded as it was in past years. There are fewer people out and about. There are the beginnings of a massive turnover in leadership at the university, so a lot is about to change.
What changes have you implemented at UCSB?
A lot. It’s been my main job to come up with changes for the school. Freshman year I was co-president of San Cat, north tower. One of the first things I did was put in a punching bag at the gym. When I was a senator my second year, one of the first things I did was implement the bike fix-it station, and passed the student bill of rights. There were a lot of institutional changes in AS UCSB. I went in and reformed the entire stipend system, the way people are paid and how much they’re paid. I implemented take out boxes at the dining commons; that was a big success. I’m developing a textbook scholarship that will start next year where people can sign up for a grant from AS UCSB to help purchase books. We’re doing a complete renovation of the University Center. It’s in progress right now, but it’s moving forward a lot. I’m also co-teaching a class with AS UCSB Vice President Alex Cho about the University of California.
What policies do you want to pass before you graduate?
The number one thing I want to pass within the associate students is a complete restructuring of AS UCSB, from the ground up. This is something I’ve wanted to do since freshman year, and it’s great that as a president, I can make this happen. I want to make it easier for people to join, to make the budget more transparent, and to make our operations run better in the long run. I identified dozens of problems and instead of fixing each problem individually, I want to restructure everything, in an effort to fix it all. I would love to see every student government pass a letter of support for the new master plan for higher education, that Vice President Alex Cho and I initiated.
Is the White House the next step for you after graduation?
No. I’m not interested in a career in politics or in the government. I’ve grown so jaded being in student government here, dealing with student officials and state elected officials. If I were to continue in local or state government, it’ll be for the same reason I got involved in student government: my passion to change issues that I know can be changed. It’s physically taxing to see issues remain, issues that officials can fix, but don’t.
What’s your favorite place to eat in IV?
That’s a great question. Freebirds and Angry Wings. Both of them. I have grown fond of Gios. So yeah, Gios is my favorite place. It has the best atmosphere. It just seems like a classic college town eatery and the food is really good. I haven’t had a better pizza in my life. They have really good ranch, too.
What’s your favorite UCSB memory?
Give me a second. I have to think about this one. I think it was my freshman year, the first election. I ran as an independent, without the support of a party. I had only my friends to help me out. When we won, when our campaign won, and we got elected, it was insane! Getting an independent elected to senate had never been done before, since the parties were formed. It was really fun and my friends and I bonded a lot. All of the good friends I have now are the same friends who worked with me through that election.
Where can we find you on a typical Friday night?
I’ll usually be in the office until around 9:30pm. And then I’ll be at my house on DP. 6575. I don’t really go out anymore, but I wait to see who comes over. Last Friday night I was eating cheese fries at Déjà vu.
Do you have advice on how to manage a heavy workload and still have fun?
It’s really bad advice, but, how do I say this gently? Just know everything in your classes, before you take the class.
What’s your advice for students who want to be AS President?
Don’t be disingenuous. Be the AS president because there’s something that you’re really passionate about, like fixing things for other people. The title shouldn’t be the main motivator. Saying you want to be the AS president is not the way to go about it. There will be a time that you know that you will run for president, and you might not know that even as a third year. One real piece of advice to being a good AS president is to learn everything about AS and UCSB, the deep administrative structures, all the little histories of things, all the policies, all the stories, all the people, all the details you can know. Know everything. Learning everything before you get the job is the best way to do the job well.
Does being AS President interfere with your love life?
No.
What do you want to be when you grow up?
I have no idea. This is a perfect job. Any other job would be a downgrade. I don’t have any long-term goals. I think that there should be more people with no long-term goals.
You’re graduating from UCSB soon. What’s next?
I’m applying to graduate schools for a masters in public administration. I would like to go to the London school of economics. I’ve never left the country. I had a brief visit to Canada, but who cares about Canada?