Voting for next year’s executive board members of Black United Students will take place today from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the second floor of the Student Center. Any undergraduate student may vote, but must bring his or her student ID.

While all but one position will be uncontested, BUS President Sasha Parker said voting is done on a yes and no ballot, and if a candidate receives more “no” votes than “yes,” he or she will not be elected.

Parker said this year’s turnout for candidates was better than last year’s, when only four students ran for executive board positions.

“This year, it’s nice to have more of the positions filled and have one contested position,” she said.

While she feels more strongly about some candidates than others, she said she feels “some leaders are not born – they’re made, and this organization is the one to do it.”

Last night in an open forum, candidates stated their platform goals and reasons for running.

President: Ashley Tolliver, sophomore fashion merchandising major

• Wants to build stronger relationships with other minority organizations, such as Kent African Student Association, KSU-NAACP and Harambee.

• Would like one mass meeting per month to have a discussion topic, in hopes of boosting attendance.

• Wants more people to know the history of BUS, and plans to begin next year by showing a documentary about the beginnings of the organization.

Vice President: Ondia Butler, junior marketing major

• Wants to give people incentives to write for Black Watch, the uncensored magazine published by BUS.

• Wants members to understand and appreciate Oscar Ritchie Hall’s history with its reopening next year.

• Would like members to understand the workings of the university as a whole.

Secretary: Alascia Jones, freshman accounting major

Jones is the current secretary of BUS, but was unable to attend the forum because of class. She said one of her goals would be to have effective note-taking and a steady flow in the BUS office.

Treasurer: Chastity Morgan, junior business management major

• Wants to see that “every dollar counts in the way it should.”

• Wants to have money for the organization on hand for smaller events so that the organization does not always have to go through the Allocation Committee.

• Wants to have entertaining and educational fundraising programs and sell T-shirts.

Programmer: Ashley Morgan, freshman marketing major

• Wants to work closely with other student organizations to coordinate event planning.

• Wants to bring in keynote speakers who are “entertaining but informative.”

• “Since we have issues with students not attending programs, we need to go out there and find out what they want to see.”

Political affairs chair: Adrianna Midamba, sophomore political science major

• Wants to put on joint programs with College Democrats and College Republicans.

• Wants to have informative meetings about political candidates so students can vote for candidates based on their stance on issues, not on surface-level perceptions.

• Wants to use this year’s upcoming presidential election as a way to bring public figures to campus.

Community affairs chair: Kaisha Sherrills, junior psychology major

• “I feel very, very strongly about this position because we’ve come so far from segregation, where we didn’t have a say in the community.”

• Wants to build relationships between the students and administration so students are knowledgeable about events at the university and in the community.

• Wants to have a “quiz bowl” program to help students learn the history of BUS and keep them involved.

Community affairs chair: Dierre Cliff, freshman pre-journalism major

• Wants to get the community involved with the university.

• Wants to bring younger students not yet in college to larger events like the Renaissance Ball and shows at the African Community Theater.

• Wants BUS to be involved in getting funding to renovate and landscape the King-Kennedy Center.

Publicity chair: Dwayne Yates, freshman pre-journalism major

• Wants to update BUS’s Web site and institute a blog.

• Wants to put together a street team to encourage people to come to events and meetings.

• Wants to use his graphic design skills to give BUS a more appealing look.

Contact minority affairs reporter Christina Stavale at [email protected].