Ashley Uzamere is the newly appointed executive vice president of the Student Government Association. She is a pre-med major and hopes to become a pediatric oncologist.
So you were just announced as SGA’s new executive vice president. What kind of emotions are going through your mind right now? How did you feel when you heard the good news?
When I got the news, I was sitting down on my couch over Christmas break, and the news actually came by complete surprise because all of the candidates and all of the people who were interested were all student leaders, we all have experience, so any one of the candidates could’ve been chosen. But for them to pick me, I’m definitely honored and very happy about it.
As the new executive VP, you and President Whyte will for all intents and purposes be the face of the student body here at Georgia State. How will you handle the pressure and responsibility that comes with representing over 32,000 students?
I think teamwork. We have myself and Andrew and a lot of student leaders, the board of VPs, including myself, so just as long as we work as a team, you know, compromise when we don’t see eye-to-eye and just making sure we get the goal done, I think that alleviates all of the stress.
What inspired you to run for this position?
Well I’m already a student leader here on campus, so it’s almost just like I saw a vacancy and took it, my passion for Georgia State and I also wanted to be able to impact students in a different way, and being a offical liaison between the student body and the SGA. All of those are things that drove me to apply for the position.
Why do you think that President Whyte saw you as the most qualified candidate for the position?
Again, all of the candidates were experienced leaders and awesome students, both in class and out of class, but I think what made me stand out was my passion for Georgia State. Also, Andrew and I worked together in the 1913 Society and as Emerging Leaders during our freshman year, so he knows my work ethic, along with other people who are currently in the SGA.
Do you plan to run again in the spring?
I was thinking about it, however I am graduating in the Fall of 2014, so exactly what happened this year with the former VP leaving early will happen again next fall if I run for the position and win. So it depends on who’s running for president, who is on the ticket, so it’s really still up in the air right now. I’m not sure.
What are your priorities and what do you hope to accomplish during your tenure here?
I really only have two main goals. My first is really to support my president because that’s my role, to back him up on anything and basically make his job easier. My second goal is to work with the senators to make sure that we see eye-to-eye. In previous years it was almost like there was a hierarchy in decision-making, everyone’s voice should be heard. Working together, much more closely, to get whatever we need done.
Do you see anything you want to change with the SGA agenda?
Possibly how we have senators sign up for things. It’s much more efficient to do things online, such as administrative tasks. I think would help our workflow and make SGA proceedings more efficient.
What are some pieces of legislation or amendments to current policies that you would like to have passed?
Not any that I personally know of. However, there are a lot of acts brought up by senators at the meetings and things like that. But right now, there’s nothing specific that I can think of that I would like amended or added to the SGA constitution.
Finally, what’s your first order of business? It doesn’t have to be in relation to anything involving SGA particularly, but just your first order of business as executive VP?
To get sworn in! I get sworn in tonight, and it becomes official. I think that’s definitely the first thing. And then to make sure I’m seeing eye-to-eye with the senators and to make sure I’m not viewed as distant from them because they’re the ones in the colleges, making things happen with the students, so they’re really kind of like our front-line men. So I really want them to view me as someone who is approachable, someone who they can talk to, someone who is… on their team. I think that’s the first thing.
