Student Assembly

Good afternoon,

On behalf of my fellow Assembly members, our Advisor Dean Hubbell, and everyone involved in the SA, which includes everyone on campus, so I should say on behalf of all of us, I would like to welcome you all to the 2009–2010 Student Assembly. I take pride in knowing people of great character and integrity, and I know that in deciding to run for the Student Assembly, my fellow Assembly members have shown themselves to be people of courage, humility, and integrity. We have made the choice to devote ourselves unselfishly to a host of student concerns. I trust that every elected representative here understands the tremendous honor, and burden, that comes along this position. People on this campus have put their trust in us because they felt that we were most capable of representing their interests. We need to understand the enormity of this responsibility. They are relying on us to fight, to struggle for them, as if it were us who are facing financial difficulties staying in Cornell, as if it were us who feel uncomfortable walking around campus. I think I speak for the entire Assembly when we say that every resource that I can muster, I will use to help you, but it isn’t about you. And I say this because when you are successful, you can help a whole lot of people. It’s not just about you or me, it’s about what we can do, the collective effort. The power that we have to accomplish our individual agendas is infinitely greater because of what we can do and the bonds we will create this year that I hope will grow and grow and develop. The experience we have here and the relationships we build, not just among ourselves, but with the entire student body, are about helping us go farther and accomplish more than we ever thought possible. My fellow members of the Assembly and esteemed guests in the audience, if you think right now that the moon is our destination, then you’re not thinking far enough.

As VP Basil said once before, this year we have the privilege of allocating the Student Activity Fee. I have no doubt in my mind that along the way we will make mistakes, but I guarantee you that we will own up to them. We will learn from one mistake and move forward. But it’s also imperative that we learn from the mistakes and successes of the past, for this year is too short to be making all the mistakes ourselves. This campus has benefited immensely from our predecessors, and the names Kwame Thomison, Elan Greenberg, CJ Slicklen, Ryan Lavin, Mazdak Asgary, Ahmed Salem, Vince Hartman, Mark Coombs, Adam Gay, and Sarah Boxer may sound foreign to you, but that’s not very important. What’s important is the mark that these individuals, who were students just like you and I, left on this campus. From making Homecoming free to creating a cheap bus service to the airports during the holidays to establishing the Direct Election of the Student Assembly President and EVP, which allowed me to be speaking before you today, these students have left their legacies. Their legacy will live on through me, and in the same respect, you should also strive to reach a status where people think of you the way I think of them. Reach the level where people are distraught by the fact that future students will not be able to meet you and benefit from your company after you leave. As a matter of fact, we are still benefiting from the mark that some of them left two years ago when they allocated the Student Activity Fee then.

Whether you are result-oriented, and highly skilled at zoning in and getting things done on your own, or whether you are a good team player who is more emotionally aware and empathetic I challenge every assembly member to recognize their strengths and weaknesses when it come to our leadership styles, since we are all respective leaders. I have the highest confidence in our abilities and I know that if each of us gives it our best, the success of the newly elected representatives is almost assured. Let us begin.