The True Leader - Katelyn Donnelly

Truth be told, the past year hasn't been the greatest for the Union.

Last year, the campus's largest and best-funded programming organization had more than a few critics. Most prominent among them, Elliot Wolf, former Duke Student Government president, vocally lampooned the Union's handling of funds. Later in the year, the Union took heat for a controversial firing of a committee chair. As a result, multiple committee members resigned in protest.

Needless to say, it wasn't the best time to be the face of the Union.But these didn't keep senior Katelyn Donnelly from throwing her hat in the ring when Union presidential election time came around. It may only be the beginning of her year-long tenure, but it's already clear that Donnelly has big changes in store for the Union.

"The Union's in a transition time," she says, "We saw that there were a lot of problems with the way that we communicated with each other and some of the disconnects that occurred within the Union."

One of Donnelly's biggest additions is a review system to evaluate the Union's budget, which drew scrutiny last year for some of its allotted items, including a paid-trip for a committee chair to attend a national film festival.

"This year, if you want to go to a conference, you have to take a proactive stance," she says. "We're really making sure that the things we do are more deliberate and have been checked over by more people."

In order to streamline communication, Donnelly and others worked to synthesize different administrative bodies into a more cohesive council. The goal is to prevent the type of communication problems that Donnelly says occurred last year after the chair of the Major Attractions committee was fired.

Donnelly says the Union will plan events that aim for broader campus appeal. One of those ideas is the reinvention of "Joe College Day" in the fall, which will feature high-profile bands and a beer garden on West Campus.