Round up the usual suspects.
Nine semi-finalists have been selected in this year's race for undergraduate young trustee, and almost all are leaders of the largest undergraduate student organizations.
"We weren't necessarily looking for someone who has been involved in everything on campus," said Thaniyyah Ahmad, Duke Student Government vice president for community interaction and chair of the Intercommunity Council, which runs the process.
Rather, committee members sought professionalism, knowledge about both undergraduate and graduate student issues, administrative interaction, a love of Duke and a well-rounded experience as primary qualities among the 16 applicants, Ahmad said.
The committee will interview each of the nine seniors before selecting three finalists by Jan. 22. At the Jan. 29 DSG general body meeting, legislators and the selection committee will choose the final young trustee, who will serve on the Board of Trustees for three years, the first in a non-voting capacity.
Although the Intercommunity Council selected eight semi-finalists last year, Ahmad said the committee chose to increase the number, allowable by a two-thirds majority vote.
THE CANDIDATES:
- Lyndsay Beal, Duke Student Government vice president for academic affairs and vice president for administration in Kappa Alpha Theta sorority, has sat on the Board's academic affairs committee for two years.
The biology major, minoring in comparative area studies, mentioned safety, use of new buildings and budgeting and finances as issues she thinks the Board will most likely consider. She also cited a 1995 campus safety report by President Nan Keohane following three assaults on students. "The fact that eight years have gone by and safety is something we still need to address is a problem," she said. One concern she doubted Trustees would consider but thought important was the student body's homogeneity.
- Brady Beecham, a double major in biology and environmental science and policy, has served as Duke University Union president and a member of Roundtable selective house and the Freshman Advisory Council Board.
Beecham pointed to research and safety issues for women as two major campus concerns. "Those are things that are right up my alley, and I think my experiences would serve a young trustee well in those areas," she said. Over the next three years, the Board's responsibility in selecting a new president and creating policy will be critical, she said. "[External forces] are going to have an agenda as to what we do here," Beecham said, adding that controversial issues like cloning will require Duke to formulate a strong ethics policy.
- John Bush has worked as both editorial page editor and online editor for The Chronicle, as a computer science undergraduate teaching assistant and as a residential adviser.
With the imminent completion of The Campaign for Duke, Bush hopes to focus on resource use. "We're on the verge of completing a $2 billion capital building campaign," said Bush, a double major in economics and computer science, with a history minor. "We have the infrastructure. The next part is making sure that we're using the infrastructure and funding that is acquired." He added that Duke's intellectual environment is important, though maybe not the Board's purview.
- Justin Ford, DSG executive vice president and a four-year member, is a double major in public policy studies and economics. He has served as chief executive officer of Devil's Delivery Service and is a member of Sigma Nu fraternity.
Diversity, attracting top students and resource expansion are the three largest issues facing the University, Ford said. "Duke has high diversity ratings, yet the ratings don't tell the full story. There are particular minorities who feel that they are not a full member of the Duke community," he said, citing the Duke Student Movement, concerns expressed by Muslim students after Sept. 11 and low support of the gay community.
- Joshua Jean-Baptiste, DSG president and a four-year member, is a double major in public policy studies and economics, with a minor in political science. He is a former vice president of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity.
Jean-Baptiste cited The Campaign for Duke, the strategic plan and the residential and social makeup of the campus as the three major issues facing the University. "It's very important that [the student village proposal] becomes the foundation for social life on campus, a place that makes faculty and graduate students also feel comfortable," Jean-Baptiste said. "We should look at what we already have and build upon that to compete with the rest of the country."
- Jeremy Morgan, Interfraternity Council president and head line monitor, has been president of Sigma Nu fraternity and CEO of DDS.
"With the diversity of my experiences at Duke, I really have a pretty good hold on the various undergraduate needs, and I think that would make me a good representative," Morgan said. The double major in economics and computer science, with markets and management certificate, sees the Board's decisions regarding the future of Central Campus and the Bryan Center as crucial, as well as enrollment in the Pratt School of Engineering and an increase in the undergraduate student body.
- Andrew Nurkin, an English major with a history minor, is a member of the Duke Honor Council, Sigma Chi fraternity and Project BUILD.
The three-year member and current president of Campus Council said he thought the greatest issues facing the University included the effective design and completion of campus construction, fulfillment of the academic program as laid out in the strategic plan and selection of a new president if Keohane steps down in 2004. "I hope that [the Trustees] really take seriously the academic plans of the University and that that becomes their first and foremost goal: to make academics at Duke a unique and vibrant atmosphere," Nurkin said.
- Jesse Panuccio, president of the Duke University Union, has served as the Union's executive vice president and chair of the Major Speakers committee.
"First and foremost are academic priorities," said the public policy studies major, with a double minor in history and English. "How do you maintain and grow those priorities on campus? It involves recruiting great faculty and great students." Social life on campus, including the future of greek organizations and the student village, monitoring facility changes and their influence on campus life, maintaining the Medical Center's national reputation while balancing research and patient care, and employee care and benefits are also issues that Panuccio thinks the Board should consider.
- Michael Weiner, a varsity soccer player, was a member of the FAC Board and Maxwell House selective living group.
A double major in economics and mathematics, Weiner hopes to improve the budget in a poor economy by switching to a zero-based budget system. "Now, Duke allocates a certain amount of money to the head of the Math department. A zero-based budget has the head of the Math department justifying each expense," he said. Other issues he hopes the Board will address are creating a student center that brings socially-segregated students together, improving safety and academic integrity.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.