Four more slates file for presidency
Published Sept. 28, 2004
Brandom Burkhart and Beth Asay
Brandon Burkhart said he wants to make sure everyone knows his name.
Burkhart announced Monday he plans to run for Missouri Students Association president with friend Beth Asay. He said he and Asay have been friends since high school.
Burkhart ran for MSA president last year and said he thinks his main problem last year was not enough students knew his platform.
"This year, I'm going to make sure I speak out to many people," he said. "I didn't reach a lot of people last year."
Asay said she has known Burkhart for more than five years and is eager to work with him to tackle campus issues. The duo said their platform includes parking and transportation, freezing tuition and increasing diversity.
Burkhart has served as an MSA senator for three years. Asay joined MSA Senate last semester.
"Last year I kind of sat back and watched what other people did," Asay said. "I wasn't excited about it, and I'd like to do what I can to make it better. I'm not afraid to speak my mind to anyone."
Burkhart said the presidency is "more important to (him) than anything."
He said sitting as president allows one to have more say on campus policies.
"The position as president allows more opportunities to get in with faculty members and make change," he said. "As a regular student or senator, it isn't always that easy."
Burkhart and Asay also are members of the College Republicans. Burkhart is a member of Delta Chi, and Asay is a member of Pi Beta Phi.
"We're both very hard workers," Asay said. "We get along well and have known each other for a long time. How many other people here can say that?"
Ben Coen and Craig Klein
Ben Coen and Craig Klein announced Monday they are running for Missouri Students Association president and vice president, respectively.
They said they plan to submit their petitions for candidacy to the Board of Elections Commissioners on Wednesday.
The candidates said Coen's Greek status and Klein's non-Greek background will help them better represent the student body.
"I'm Greek, he's non-Greek," said Coen, who is president of Delta Upsilon. "We will have the perfect system of checks and balances."
If elected, some changes the slate hopes to accomplish are the reform of parking meters, keeping the business school's doors open longer so people can study there, improving the removal of ice in the winter and making sure MU continues its many traditions.
"A lot of students want to stay on campus and study," Coen said.
Coen said 24-hour parking-meter enforcement and the College of Business locking its front door early prevent students from maximizing study time.
"Studying and school's the main reason we're all here," Coen said. "We are both really big on tradition and values. We were both Summer Welcome leaders together, and I was on the Homecoming Steering Committee last year. We're big on traditions and keeping the feeling of Mizzou."
The slate hopes to better connect with students.
"We want to reconnect with students," Klein said. "MSA Senate is not well-connected with students right now. We want to see MSA Senate form a PR committee that would work with campus media to better inform students."
Coen said he believes the pair's previous leadership experience will help them in the election.
Klein serves on the Associated Students of the University of Missouri Board of Directors.
"We're both big leaders on campus," Coen said. "After seeing last election, I felt I would be a good representative to the students."
Andy Fluhart and Jackie Cook-Eberle
Missouri Students Association presidential candidate Andy Fluhart and his running mate Jackie Cook-Eberle are looking for ways to make students and the campus safer.
Fluhart, a senior, and Cook-Eberle, a junior, said they are eager to get their ideas out to students as soon as possible.
"Both of us are exposed to a lot of different groups and students," Cook-Eberle said. "We want to get involved, have access to more students and start making some real changes for them."
The team is preparing several proposals for its platform, including improvements to public transportation.
Another platform idea is to increase campus safety through a device called a keychain call box. These eraser-sized keychains have a button attached to them that, when pushed in an emergency, alerts a local police station of a student's personal information and current location. Cook-Eberle said giving each student a keychain is an improvement to the blue light emergency stations on campus.
"The blue lights give a false security because it could take two to three minutes for the police to show up, whereas the silent alarm alerts the police immediately," Cook-Eberle said.
Fluhart said the devices have been successful at other campuses and are financially feasible for MU.
Fluhart has been involved in MSA since his freshman year. He served as assistant clerk and vice chairman for the Student Affairs Committee. He is in his third year as an MSA senator, and he is also president of Omicron Delta Kappa and a peer rape educator. Cook-Eberle is also a peer rape educator and vice president of Stronger Together Against Rape. Although she has not participated in MSA, she said this might be beneficial because she will be starting fresh.
"Taking a leadership role is nothing new to us," Fluhart said. "We've been doing it for a long time."
Matt Sokoloff and Greg Chase
As the national presidential election approaches, a more local campaign is heating up. Sophomores Matt Sokoloff and Greg Chase submitted their petition for candidacy for Missouri Students Association president and vice president on Friday.
Sokoloff said he and his running mate plan to focus on students' needs if elected. Although they do not want to announce their detailed platform until later in the campaign, Sokoloff said each issue came directly from students.
Sokoloff said they want to address issues such as campus safety, student involvement and parking and transportation, while putting an emphasis on the students' voice.
"These are all issues that students care about, every item in our outline for office has come from an individual student who came to us with concerns," he said.
Sokoloff said he would like to see administrators consult students before making important decisions.
"Any time students have a concern, that concern should be dealt with," Sokoloff said. "That is not currently what happens. They get thrown into the Jesse shuffle, trying to find out what office to go to, and I think that needs to be dealt with."
Chase said he and Sokoloff would try to put students first if elected.
"In order to get some things done on this campus, you have to hold a position where you will be heard and listened to," Chase said. "We're here to make a difference."
Sokoloff is the Student Fee Review Committee chairman in the MSA Senate.
Chase served as Senate Clerk and Board of Elections Commissioners Chairman last year. He is on the Associated Students of the University of Missouri Board of Directors. He worked with administrators to organize campus safety demonstrations and to rewrite the honor code.