Dylan Cook for Executive Vice President

(Running with Catie Collins, candidate for President)

What experience and qualifications do you have?

During the 2010-2011 Academic Year, I served as a Student Government Association Senator. During my term as Senator, I worked on establishing the Student Unity Fund, an emergency financial aid program designed to keep students in school after they experience sudden financial hardships. As part of this program, our team focused on fostering a students-helping-students attitude amongst the greater campus community, while at the same time working to re-evaluate the often “business-like” approach of campus services in their dealings with students. As a result of our efforts, this emergency fund was established, student fees were re-evaluated, and a new way that our student community will be able to support itself in the future was collaboratively designed by students and staff alike. I am also the current Philanthropy Chairman of Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity, working towards constructing service initiatives, fundraising events, and awareness campaigns for our national philanthropy, PUSH America.

What is your platform? What do you hope to accomplish if you win?

We seek to both enable new opportunities for student voices to be heard and expand upon those that already exist. We believe that by engaging students through these opportunities, our SGA and UMBC as a whole will better reflect their opinions and values. We also aim to increase collaborations between different sectors of campus in order to create an environment geared towards the betterment of members of its community.

What I really want students to know about me is….

If I have learned anything at all from my time here at UMBC, it is that some of the most incredible ideas are created from collaborative efforts. In saying this, I don’t just mean a group of people coming together to work for a common purpose; some of the most incredible ideas come from groups of people who have entirely different backgrounds, strengths, and life experiences. To me, there is an inherent value in taking a look at an issue from many more perspectives than just one. It’s the key reason behind why I major in Interdisciplinary Studies, and work on projects in SGA that involve SGA officers, faculty, and students, who all come together to solve a common issue. As Executive Vice President of the SGA, I will commit to utilizing this approach in every aspect of my work.

Platform Summary:           

• Establishing quality assurance and accountability programs that ensure students are getting the most out of their campus relationships.
• Creating a campus culture that cultivates a full spectrum of health and wellness by developing new programs and initiatives.
• Continuing to develop SGA as a representative body that is both transparent and effective; one that truly encourages student advocacy.

The following organizations and individuals have formally endorsed this candidate by filing statements with the Election Board:

Stilettos

Mama's Boys
Charles Kuo (Mama's Boys President)
Susan Wilmes (Musical Theatre Club Secretary; Cleftomaniacs Secretary)
The Cleftomaniacs
FASA
Heather Kopf (PHA Vice President of Recruitment)