The Dickinson Student Senate elections for first-year seats ended on Sept. 23 with a last-minute event on Britton Plaza to gather votes. Most of the 30 Senate candidates and four of the class president candidates gave final speeches to first-year voters passing by.
The event was arranged by members of Student Senate, who handed out Rita’s to every first year who showed proof of having voted to stimulate interest in the election. Informative discussions were also held by Senate members for the purpose of increasing the energy in what in previous years was an event that was often overlooked.
Student Body President Andrew Garcia ’26, who was involved in the orientation events for the Class of 2028, said student interest this year is a substantial increase from that of 2027. This class saw a 50% increase in the number of candidates for Student Senate seats and a greater number of campaign posters.
Garcia was particularly intrigued by a proposal from an unnamed candidate for a system of expensive textbooks to be directly passed down from sophomores to incoming freshmen to reduce the burden of requirements in often mandatory introductory courses for certain majors. He spoke to the class president candidates and was quite satisfied with their energetic leadership.
Several students who attended the event talked with The Dickinsonian about the issues they saw as most important for the incoming Senate to fix. Robert Wood ’28 said he would prefer more variation in the food in the Dining Hall, a greater emphasis on hygiene in dorm bathrooms and more events specifically for first-years to help with the transition to college. He wants to see the elected senators focus on issues related to the quality of student life.
Another student voter, Theodore Kaster ’28, came to support his choice candidate Kevin Castillas ’28, and spoke about the need for a first-year senator who listens to the class.
Castillas describes his vision for a Student Senate that matches the interests of first-years. In his mind, sustainability is a core issue that Dickinson’s Student Senate should further focus on by continuing to reduce waste. In his opinion, the first-year class is also concerned with increased transparency given several incidents in the past few weeks such as the removal of a member of staff due to alleged felonies, a red alert involving a gun and changes in policies around demonstrations. Castillas also believes that Dickinson’s attempts to foster diversity and inclusivity should be continued.
This year’s election has also seen a greater range of colorful flyers being placed around campus, with an array of unconventional designs. Benjamin Cook ’28 used an image of the Statue of Liberty to bring a sense of optimism to his campaign. Kevin Castillas ’28 placed his face on a pair of characters from the LEGO movie in reflection of his use of social media to campaign. Samantha Schoenewald ’28 photoshopped stars onto a picture of herself.
