Engineering Student Government endorses Tommy Hessel for DSG president

Duke Engineering Student Government endorses Tommy Hessel for Duke Student Government President. Both candidates have impressive backgrounds and demonstrate an understanding of current issues at Duke and a passion for serving as DSG president. Having met with both candidates, the executive board collectively agrees that Tommy’s experience on many influential DSG projects, his clear vision for his presidency and his eagerness to collaborate on projects affecting Pratt Students, makes him ESG’s ideal candidate for DSG president. 

Part of ESG’s mission is to facilitate Pratt students’ adjustment from high school to the rigor of Duke academics and college life. Tommy exemplifies his desire to ease the transition for all students by working on projects that impact some of the most foundational parts of a Duke student’s career. His work to create 360° images of dorms eases many of the anxieties associated with moving into a new environment. Similarly, Tommy has been an integral part of improving DukeHub’s usability and accessibility which will impact students throughout all four years of their undergraduate careers. In his conversation with us, we appreciated that Tommy recognized that many of these OIT projects could benefit from input from Pratt students, and he encouraged collaboration. 

Tommy’s crowdfunding proposal—which would provide funding to student groups apart from SOFC funding—stands out to ESG because this would bolster many Pratt students who are involved in organizations, project teams or individual inquiries that need extra resources to support project development and material acquisition costs. 

Furthermore, Tommy demonstrates his commitment to supporting all undergraduate students through his President’s Roundtable which would allow for greater communication between DSG and other student leaders. This would ensure Pratt students’ voices are considered in important university wide decisions. Tommy recognized that this would be an excellent opportunity to strengthen ties between ESG and DSG to make Duke more equitable for everyone. As such, ESG is confident that Tommy Hessel is the best candidate for Duke Student Government President.

Emma Steadman, Pratt 2022 

Engineering Student Government, Vice President 

Editor's Note: Your group may submit your endorsements to Leah Abrams and Jake Satisky by 8 p.m. on Wednesday, March 4. Read our full endorsement policy here.