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Friday, March 29
The Indiana Daily Student

student life

RHA kicks off election campaigns

Signs covering campus bus stops and bulletins reading “FLEX” and “SOAK” are designed to garner attention for Tuesday’s Residence Hall Association
election.

SOAK represents that ticket’s commitment to “soak up the concerns and desires of our constituents,” and FLEX is an acronym Future IU, Leadership, Empowerment and Experience.

Students who live in all 12 IU residence halls will have the opportunity to vote for one of two tickets in their respective buildings from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. The specific locations for voting will vary based on the building, but election commission officials said they will most likely be located near center desks and main lobbies.

The ballot will consist of two tickets of students running for executive positions including president, vice president of internal affairs, vice president of programming and vice president of student affairs.

Voters may also select Haylee Clark, who is running for vice president for student affairs on an independent ticket.

RHA Election Commissioner Allyson Gergely said voter turnout has been low in past elections, estimating that roughly 10 percent of residence hall residents participate.

“Even though most people aren’t living in the dorms next year, you’re making a decision for the people living next year and making a responsible decision for your campus,” Gergely said.

RHA is a student-run organization that acts as a liaison between Residential Programs and Services administrators and students living in residence halls. By offering free campus-wide programs and events — everything from “Nutella Fest” to the spring Energy Challenge — RHA members said they hope to give students a sense of community in the dorms.

“In my opinion, RHA serves as an immediate connection between residents and administrators,” junior Claire Houterman, presidential candidate for the FLEX ticket and current RHA chief of staff , said. “We really have the opportunity to share and grow from that relationship.”

Along with working with student governments of each residence hall, RHA divides into several sub-committees that help improve various aspects of residence hall living such as transportation, living-learning centers and general dorm rates and budgets.

Still, compared to organizations such as Union Board and IU Student Administration, RHA representatives said they feel their organization does not have a strong presence among students.

“Most people I talk to do not know what RHA is, and I feel like that’s a huge problem,” Kala Majors, sophomore and presidential candidate for the SOAK ticket, said. “We as RHA students work so hard to try to do what we’re supposed to do, but it’s not always translating in serving and representing students.”

Representatives from both tickets have presented to the residence hall student governments and sponsored a town-hall meeting Feb. 28 at the Hoosier Den, where students could ask questions to members on both tickets.

Each group emphasized the number one goal for RHA is increasing student awareness and attendance at events and programming.

“We serve a lot of the campus who are in this bubble,” Majors said. “A lot of people do have bad experiences in the residence halls because they don’t feel like they’re at home. And the RHA is a part of what makes students feel at home.”

Majors, of the SOAK ticket, said they plan to implement a new position, director of campus outreach, to increase RHA awareness.He is the current president of Forest Quad student government.

Houterman’s FLEX ticket said their past experience in residence hall government — all four candidates are current juniors — will help improve student awareness among currently existing committees and directors.

RHA encourages students to contact their dorm’s center desk or residence assistant regarding details of the voting process.
    

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