When the signs promoting candidates in the Associated
Students of Utah State University election go up around campus
this week, Dayton Martindale will do his best to ignore it all.
“I haven’t even given it a
second thought,” he said. “I have been here for two years and I haven’t seen
how ASUSU has had any input about anything. The fact is that there are people
above them that are making all the final decisions.”
He’s not alone in his disinterest.
Fewer than 30 percent of students on Utah State’s main campus voted in the 2012 student
government election.
But when either Josue
Carias, Doug Fiefia, Luke Ensign, Hayden Smith or Chaise Warr is announced as
the newly elected ASUSU president, following the voting on Wednesday and
Thursday, they’re going to have a lot of big issues to tackle, said current ASUSU
President Christian Thrapp.
Among the biggest
challenges: A change in missionary age announced by The Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-Day Saints last year is expected to have a significant impact on
enrollment and funding.
"Next year will probably be
pretty interesting,” Thrapp said. “We will be losing so many students to
missions that the student fee board will have to deal with the potential of
lost funding. Less students means less money.”
In addition to dealing with the
potential loss of funds, the incoming student government will be in charge of
finalizing the plans for a new student health and fitness center.
“The new president will help
with the development and the design of the new Aggie Life and Wellness Center
once it gets passed,” Thrapp said. “They will be traveling to other
universities checking out what other campuses have going on.”
James Morales — one of the “people
above” that students like Martindale believe render ASUSU essentially powerless
— said student opinion does play a important role in the direction the
university is heading.
The vice president for student services believes that a higher
voter turnout is essential for the success of ASUSU.
“If students become involved
in university issues, their voices can be heard and make a difference,” Morales
said. “With enough support, ASUSU can make positive changes for the university.
It is essential for the students to speak up.”
Morales hopes that
throughout this week students realize that the potential candidates can make a
difference for Utah State, and he encouraged all students to become informed
and see what decisions lie ahead.
Bradley Thatcher, Jordan Groff, Zach Waxler and
Caesarea Kritz contributed to this article.
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