recruitment.
Of course, it all begins with recruitment. My job is to work hard, reaching far and wide to as many interested students as possible. Recruitment begins before students even set foot back on grounds. The most fun part is to order all of the fun swag to pass out, however I should make a mental note to order it much sooner. Summer has a way of sapping out all motivation for school work! Nonetheless, we eventually had some nice things to pass out.
the people.
From the looks of it, our committees are filled with some of the most passionate and involved students at this University. Most of this is captured by the diversity of the committees themselves, as well as the students they reach out to. A major goal is to get more graduate students involved, which is pretty difficult considering how Student Council majorily represents undergraduate interests, and how graduate schools have governing bodies of their own. I am really appreciative of graduate school reps who push forward StudCo’s events to reach grad students.
public relations.
I’ve seen this organization grow in two years from barely having a website to having a full-fledged, operational site, Facebook page and Twitter. “UVaStudCo” has 2,772 Facebook followers, and 362 Twitter followers. Even my mom follows UVaStudCo. This is a tremendous success, but also an enormous responsibility. Everything that we post on StudCo’s page gets read by thousands of people. It’s my job to make sure that information is accurate and relevant, and to make sure that we post things students actually want to read. It’s really fun, actually. I log into Facebook about once or twice a week, and post fun and interesting things happening at UVA.
newspapers.
The Cavalier Daily has been our strongest ally in reporting the decisions of Student Council, as well as issues that are presented at meetings. That doesn’t mean that we control what they print in the slightest. It’s the DUR’s job to make sure that the Cav Daily is receiving all the information they need, and then the news team decides what to report on. Charlottesville papers have yet to warm up to us, and they usually listen to the UVA Office of Public Relations more so than us. That doesn’t mean it can’t hurt to try!
speakupuva.
This site has been the pride and joy or Student Council, and it’s all due to the wonderful responses from representatives from around the University, as well as some keen issue-spotting from the students. I hope this site gets preened and polished, and more effectual as the new year comes in. Some good buzz has been generated by M&C’s (very rainy) SpeakUpUVA Day, as well as some of the hot-ticket issues around grounds, for example the Magnolia Trees near the Rotunda.
studco-sponsorships.
I am so proud to have this as an additional option for CIOs and Special Status Organizations at UVA. There is definitely a learning curve here, and it’s not very easy. UVA has imposed many limits on how money can be spent, and where. In working with The Women’s Center on co-sponsoring “Voices of Haiti” next February, I’m learning things about the budget limitations that most students would shudder to think of (with the exception of Aneesha Rao and Katie Gaver, of course. they’re pros). In the future, I would like to see this program grow, and become approachable.
relationships.
This coming year, 2012, I want to go back to my original intent of being Director of University Relations, which was to try and build relationships with key administrators and local leaders. I want to institutionalize these relationships somehow, so my job won’t be so hard for the next person that does it.
2012.
T-Shirts are here! I’m not giving them out until next year, so a) StudCo members don’t leave them at home and b) Everyone can get excited for the next semester. Once January rolls around, we’re going to light the fires and kick the tires. But for now, finals call. And we are all reminded that we’re just students.
