91涩漫

By Elissa Doering 鈥�23 

91涩漫 students Thais Perez 鈥�23 and Ashley Blancas 鈥�23 will lead the Student Government Association鈥檚 executive board this upcoming academic year, in their roles as President and Executive Vice President, respectively.

Perez and Blancas are excited to build upon previous successes, including the Sister Angela Mesa Project, which offers a food pantry for students; Brave Space Dialogues, which are student lead spaces to reflect and process a variety of heavy topics; and collaborating with the Student Activities Council on Spirit Week. 

鈥淚鈥檝e grown a lot being in SGA, and a lot of my drive has come from the alignment that I鈥檝e felt in the positions that I鈥檝e held, starting with Inclusive Excellence Senator,鈥� says Perez, who will be returning to SGA for her third year. For Blancas, being part of SGA also offers a unique learning experience. 鈥�I鈥檝e learned about enhancing my leadership skills, communicating with the school regarding certain events I wanted to create, and understanding how important our voices are at the 91涩漫.鈥� 

When asked about her priorities as the SGA president for the upcoming year, Perez explains that she 鈥渉opes to unite the campus a bit more as we continue to transition into in-person learning. Specifically, I want to work with the University  to continue to engage in conversations centering on students and their needs, making sure we are all uplifting and supporting minorities on campus that might be underrepresented.鈥� 

Blancas also hopes to bring more students together and create a welcoming environment for them. Another top goal is to increase awareness of SGA on campus. 鈥淢any students aren鈥檛 fully aware of what SGA is or does, and I鈥檇 like to focus on our representation and communication to students about our roles and importance,鈥� she says.   

According to Perez, the SGA will also work to make both campuses more accessible for students with disabilities, ensuring that their needs are met across different areas.  

Applications are now open to join SGA, and President Perez offers strong reasons for becoming a part of the organization: 鈥淛oining SGA opens up a lot of doors for leadership development, networking, and connection to your space and the University as a whole where you can grow professionally, find your career path and figure out what issues are important to you and how you can be more involved, not just at our campus but throughout the LA community and beyond.鈥� 

Interested in joining SGA? Applications can be found on Engage on the Student Government Association page. Upon submitting your application, you will receive a confirmation email and a Calendly invite to sign up for a 15-minute interview. We look forward to hearing from you and creating effective change at the 91涩漫!