ASA endorses DSG candidates

The Asian Students Association endorses the following candidates for the 2007-2008 Duke Student Government Executive Board.

Paul Slattery, President-We appreciated both junior Kristin Pfeiffer and sophomore Andrew Tutt's focus on making a more inclusive DSG, which we thought was lacking at times in this year's administration. Pfeiffer seemed to have cultural groups such as ASA in mind. However, Slattery's extensive knowledge of the University, experience and perspective sets him apart from the other two candidates.

Jordan Giordano, executive vice president-Giordano and Alex Crable, both sophomores, are highly qualified and we would be pleased to see either win. Both have track records that demonstrate their abilities to deliver. However, Giordano's interactions through his current role as VP of community interaction with student leaders who encompass nearly all experiences at Duke give him the perspective that we feel is best suited for executive VP.

Joshua Kazdin, VP of academic affairs-Academically, our focuses include increased faculty diversity and support for academic programs in ethnic and regional studies. Out of the four candidates, we felt that Kazdin, a junior, would best represent these goals.

Genevieve Cody, VP of community interaction-We felt that both Cody, a junior, and sophomore Brandon Roane had similar visions in their platforms for engaging Duke students on campus and in the community. Cody's experience on the Young Trustee Nominating Committee and her endorsement by the Director of the Durham Human Relations Department, however, separate her from Roane. We felt that freshman Lee Strasburger did not possess enough knowledge and experience for this position.

Madison Li, VP of student affairs-We were disappointed by what we felt was superficial knowledge from both candidates. When questioned about space for student organizations, neither candidate had seemed to think about this issue. We liked freshman Lucy McKinstry's suggestion for uniting student groups with common service goals, but we felt that Li's exposure to the workings of other universities makes her better suited for this position.

Kevin Fang

Trinity'07