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Schulte said that the current alcohol policy is unfair and ineffective. Currently, underage students caught drinking in the residence halls are fined via their student accounts. Schulte said that most of the journal articles on the subject that he’s read note that this policy doesn’t discourage the use of alcohol, as a fine tacked onto an already large bill goes unnoticed. Rather, he said that community service or out-of-pocket fines are the things that change behaviors.

Schulte and Sawyer would also like to renovate the Bush Student Center, including the addition of a bar. This can provide upperclassmen with a place to spend time on campus and discourage people from crossing Snelling and other busy roads while intoxicated, the candidates said. In addition, they say a bar can promote responsible drinking, as a bartender can refuse service after someone has reached their limit and monitor the rate at which students drink.

They are also pushing for a senior week. There is a senior party in place each year, but Schulte and Sawyer say that it isn’t enough.

“If you work hard for four years here, you deserve more than one night at the bar,” Sawyer said. As a result, he and Schulte would like to ensure that at least four days are left for upperclassmen to engage in activities with their graduating class after undergrads have left campus for the year.

Schulte and Sawyer would also like to make HUSC more efficient, fairer with their budgets and get more people to run in the elections. They say there are significant problems, such as resolutions not being updated.

Schulte and Sawyer have over five years of experience in HUSC together, which they say has gotten them to know the policies well. Schulte has spent time in the food service department, and said he’s gotten ideas from there by engaging in conversations with students face-to-face. Sawyer is currently the only student on the Campus Life Committee, which he said has given him practice in representing students.

“We need to get back to finding out what students want and telling that to the administration,” Schulte said.

Dahmon Romness and Brian McShea

Sophomores Dahmon Romness and Brian McShea said that their main goal in HUSC is to improve relations between HUSC and the student body. They said that currently HUSC is not doing its job as effectively as they would prefer, as the bylaws are not updated with new amendments and because the organization is not visible enough.

One way they plan to increase visibility is by tabling in high-traffic areas at least once a week. By advertising that they’re open to talk with students, they hope to get undergraduates more involved with HUSC. They also plan on bullet-pointing the main accomplishments of each general assembly and sending it to students via e-mail rather than just posting minutes of the meeting online.

Romness said that there is “a huge disconnect between the student body and HUSC, which McShea backed up by saiding HUSC is “very internal.” They said that this compromises the diversity of the organization. Romness promises to double the hours the HUSC president is required to serve in order to touch base with more students and more accurately represent them.

Another of Romness and McShea’s goals is to decrease wasteful spending by revamping the way money is given out to organizations. Typically, organizations that do not use all of their funds do not get as much in the following year, which the said leads to organizations spending their budget on things they do not need at the end of the year. By changing this policy and creating more equality in how much of a budget each organization receives, the two plan to reduce this problem.

Romness and McShea also hope to make Old Main accessible. While they said all buildings should eventually be accessible, elevators and other changes in areas such as Bush Student Center and the Heights would come at a high cost and take a long time to complete. Therefore, they propose that Old Main be redone first, as reworking the already existing ramp could grant access to most of the building.

Romness has worked in the offices of two Vice Presidents at Hamline and knows much of the administration on a first-name basis, as well as having experience in public speaking. McShea has experience in running meetings under parliamentary procedure has participated in multiple social justice organizations. They feel these experiences can help them accomplish their goals.

“A platform tells people what [a candidate] wants to do. The candidate tells how effectively they can do it,” McShea said.

Michael Elliot and Ed Elfmann

Write-in candidates Michael Elliott and Ed Elfmann, juniors, said that their primary concerns are sparking interest in HUSC and ensuring that they are available for students to talk to.

To do this, they plan on scheduling walk-in times when students can meet with them and their executive board to address any concerns they have. They said that they would also like to keep in contact with all student organizations and clean up the HUSC website.

Elliott and Elfmann said that another one of their main goals would be to reschedule events on campus to have less overlap in order for more students to be involved in each of them. They also said they would like input from student on what activities they would enjoy having on campus, as they feel this could increase attendees to events.

In addition, Elliott and Elfmann said that they would like to work to improve the way HUSC itself runs. They said this starts by putting the needs of the student body at the forefront of HUSC’s priorities.

They said that involving students more often by having them come to the general assemblies and keeping an eye on spending by the organization can also help accomplish this.

The pair is also concerned with economic issues such as tuition fees and the price of textbooks, and said they will look into finding ways to cut these costs.

Individual student projects are also of interest to Elliott and Elfmann. They would like to see the university provide supplies and funding for students who are pursuing independent activities or research projects that they said can ignite a sense of community in the university.

“We really want to change the environment of HUSC to have more professionalism and more compassion for students on campus,” Elliott said.

Due to complications, Elliott and Elfmann are running a write-in campaign, so students will have to manually add them onto the list of candidates at the polling stations.

Tina VanSteenbergen and Cindy Schuchardt

Sophomore Tina VanSteenbergen and junior Cindy Schuchardt said their main goal is to “bring students back to HUSC” in order to increase diversity in the organization and make it stronger as a whole.

They said the first step in this process is creating a stronger relationship between HUSC and other university organizations. They plan to speak with each organization twice a month in order to do this. They also encourage students to join HUSC and bring concerns or recommendations to its members as they think of things.

“Reps are good, but it has to extend a little bit further than that,” Schuchardt said. She and VanSteenbergen would like to see representatives spend more time with those they embody so that they can understand what is most important to them. The team also saids that they would like to implement changes in order to make the process of getting funding for these organizations more “user-friendly.”

Additionally, VanSteenbergen and Schuchardt would like to see the Coalition for Social Change emerge as a strong voice for Hamline's many advocacy organizations. They feel this can help to better accomplish HUSC's commitment to strive for diversity.

VanSteenbergen and Schuchardt said they would like to improve the reputation of HUSC by working from within HUSC to create change. VanSteenbergen said this is needed in order to show students that “it's not scary and they’re not bad people and good change can come.”

Additional goals are to improve technology on campus, such as providing more computer kiosks in more high-traffic areas and strengthening wireless services, and get students aware of and involved in the Strategic Planning developments that will be coming to fruition in May.

VanSteenbergen has served with Student Organization Committee of HUSC and Residential Life, and has experience as an SOS Leader. Schuchardt is involved with HEAT and the Student Alumni Board, and has served as a Bridges Scholars and SOS Leader. They said these things have taught them leadership skills, gotten them in contact with people that can help them in their goals and gotten them used to the “campus climate.”

“Through Strategic Planning, bringing HUSC back to the students and working within HUSC to promote change, our platform is the most realistic and positive way to inflict change on this campus,” VanSteenbergen said.