Black United Students is holding an open-discussion forum at 7 p.m. Monday in the multi-purpose room in Oscar Ritchie Hall for anyone who wants to fill an elected or appointed position for next school year.

Being a part of BUS will give students social, academic and career connections, as well as the opportunity to understand how the university itself works, BUS president Ashley Tolliver said.

The candidates who run in the election are historically unopposed, and Tolliver said there is too much talent on campus for there to be unopposed elections.

“I want the candidates to know exactly what they are going to get themselves into,” Tolliver said. “There are too many people that, when they join BUS and things get hard, they want to quit, and in life you can’t quit like that.”

Tolliver said BUS has prepared her colleagues, friends and herself to be smarter individuals in an unforgiving world filled with harsh realities. She said BUS wants to see new faces because it gives the group an opportunity to become more diverse. Not participating in student organizations is doing yourself a disservice, she said, because college is a place where students learn who they are.

Tolliver said the organization has made mistakes in its past, but it is trying to learn from them. She said BUS has revamped itself this semester, and she hopes the new leaders will be willing and able to carry the torch.

– Kyle Roerink