The Madison College Student Senate has announced the results of the 2014 Spring Election. Tariq Anjum will represent the College as Student Senate president for the coming year. Others elected include: Vice President of Administration and Finance LeRoy Cordova, Vice President of Legislative Affairs David Fernandez, Vice President of Public Relations Sarad Aryal and Vice President of Team Development Melissa Zuengler.

Lina Marcela Perez Guzman, Tarik Amiri, Isaac Brown, Andrew Jones and Mark Thompson have been chosen to represent the college as senators for the 2014-2015 year.

With 13,773 students eligible to vote, 491 actually voted in this spring’s election. While this may seem like a pretty small ratio, it matches up quite evenly with voter participation in student elections across the nation. At two-year colleges in the United States, an average of two percent of the student population votes in student leadership elections. For Madison College, these numbers are a little lower than last year at this time, when 8 percent of eligible voters casted ballots. Student Senate adviser Jackie Dahlke said that this drop came as no surprise to her, considering that the last election contained a referendum question, which usually brings in more voters.

As the new Student Senate President, Anjum hopes to empower students, create more scholarship opportunities and reduce textbook costs, among other goals. The Liberal Arts Transfer student hopes to attend UW-Madison’s Business School in spring 2015 and eventually earn a master’s degree in Business and Information Technology.

Anjum is enthusiastic and confident in his team of officers and senators. “I believe they are leaders and they are good team players,” he said. “We all have a common goal, which is to serve fellow students and [the] community.”

Along with Anjum, Cordova, Fernandez and Brown are all returning to the Senate, while the others are new to the group. The new team will be sworn in at the end of the general assembly meeting Thursday, May 8, symbolically taking the place of this year’s officers and senators. During the summer, the officers will meet every week, making plans, compiling data and creating a framework for the year to come. Senators will also participate in work sessions to discuss the year’s plans.

Dahlke says one of the most important things they will work on this summer is to create a plan for regional involvement. If the referendum for a regional student activity fee goes through, students from Portage, Reedsburg, Fort Atkinson and Watertown will be eligible to hold senate seats and run for office. The current officers and senators will be responsible for designing a structure where they can communicate effectively with those elected from the regional campuses. “Senate will be different than ever before,” Dahlke said.

Voting students were given a chance to request specific Student Senate initiatives when they cast their ballots. The group plans to also comb through these ideas this summer and create plans based on student demand.

By working with Student Senate for the past year, Anjum has grown to love working with these like-minded people. While he understands that his elevated position comes with a multitude of expectations and increased responsibility, he is excited to continue his work with the community to improve the Madison College experience for all who work and study on its campuses.

Dahlke appreciates the marketing experience that Anjum brings to the table. With the small number of Student Senate members in comparison to the large student body, she says this is crucial for inspiring students to get involved.

 As Anjum leads the Student Senate in the coming year, he plans to keep his fellow students’ best interest in mind at all times. “What is most important in life is not so much how we are benefited, but rather how we can benefit others,” he said.