Shippensburg University Student Senate elections began Monday, allowing students to vote for new members of the Executive Rules Committee (ERC) for the 2016-17 academic year.

The annual election cycle began about three weeks ago when interested students filled out applications, and it will end over spring break with the announcement of the results. The four positions available include president, vice president, treasurer and secretary.

Students have until Friday at 4 p.m. to vote by responding to the email Senate sent to students. There is one candidate each for president, vice president and treasurer, and two for secretary. Students may write in a vote for the student of their choice.

The five candidates are Traci Moyer for president, Trent Bauer for vice president, Chris Windbeck for treasurer, Shane Kaliszewski for secretary and Crystal Hartman for secretary.

Election Speeches

The candidates delivered speeches about themselves and their ambitions and answered questions about their character on Thursday at McFeely’s, in the Ceddia Union Building.

Moyer, who is the current Senate vice president, took the stage first and said she has the experience and qualifications to be president.

“I’ve been a leader since I’ve got here,” Moyer said, who is a political science major. “I’m very qualified for this.”

Moyer’s efforts to help students cope with the state budget impasse, which left some students without money to pay rent and buy food, is one of the biggest issues she worked on, Moyer said.

Vice presidential candidate Bauer, who is the current Senate secretary, introduced himself as a tall basketball player who is knowledgeable with managing student groups.

“I’m a 6–10 basketball player from a small town I guarantee you never heard of,” Bauer said. “The only thing that grows taller than the corn, is the people.”

Bauer said one of the biggest challenges he looks to face is mending relationships with student groups and Senate, and promoting Senate’s image at SU.

Justin Schneider, the current Senate treasurer, said he heard that comment before in the past.

“You may have heard that three years prior, and every year since, but you have not heard it from me,” Bauer said.

Windbeck is the current Residence Hall Association (RHA) senator and an executive board member of RHA. He said that if he is elected he will not take a leadership position in RHA, but said he understands that it may be hard to not be biased toward RHA as treasurer. By sticking to the facts and following Schneider’s example he can curtail that issue, Windbeck said.

The final two candidates spoke to distinguish themselves as the right person to be Senate secretary next year. Hartman, the current class of 2018 senator, said she wants to be secretary to take on more responsibility at SU.

“I want to get more involved with the campus,” she said, noting she plans to use her public relations experience to promote Senate’s image at SU. “I’m ready for a bigger responsibility.”

Hartman’s opponent, Kaliszewski, is a freshman and the only candidate that does not have current or prior experience on Senate.

“I think that it’s really important for students to know that there is a government there to represent them to the administration,” Kaliszewski said, adding that if he is not elected secretary he will consider running for a senator position.

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