After sweeping the ASUO primary election, minus one Senate seat, last Thursday, President-elect Ben Eckstein and Vice President-elect Katie Taylor sat down with the Emerald to discuss their administration’s goals as they prepare to step into their new positions on May 25.
Oregon Daily Emerald: What do you like about the University?
Katie Taylor: I think it’s a really nice campus; I’ve had a really good experience here altogether. It was really nice and easy for me to transfer here from Lane Community College. I just enjoy our campus. I think that’s the best part, especially if you go over where McKenzie and Deady Hall are — that’s my favorite part of campus — so I would say our campus.
Ben Eckstein: Yeah, I think we have a beautiful campus, I really like the campus culture. We have a pretty laid-back campus, but also very engaged and students tend to care about the issues and be pretty friendly and pretty involved, so I like the campus culture.
ODE: What do you like about the ASUO?
BE: So many opportunities to make a difference on issues that you care about. Really, that there is no limit. On any issue that I care about or any issue that any student cares about, there is no end to how much they could work on that issue, through the ASUO and the resources and empowerment that the ASUO could provide to them.
KT: Yeah, I think that the ASUO is a great place for students to get involved and get engaged, and I think that they really demonstrate the capability of what students are able to accomplish and giving students a lot of say in what goes on here on campus. They’re, in my opinion, the biggest stakeholders here on campus, so I really like that the ASUO is a place that facilitates student voice and student involvement.
ODE: Do you have any immediate priorities in a term as president or vice president?
BE: Right now, putting together the most effective staff possible to work for students. That is our immediate priority from now until transition is putting together a team that can do excellent work for students throughout the year.
KT: I think hiring staff is the first thing that we’re going to be doing and then hiring a chief of staff to work with us to help hire the rest of our staff is the first thing on our agenda.
ODE: How do you want to use outreach and education to get more students involved and knowledgeable about the ASUO?
BE: It is a priority. There are a lot of different ways; some of which we’ve thought of, some of which we’ve yet to think of. One way that personally is really important to me: I became involved in the ASUO through the internship program, but the reason that I became an ASUO intern is because someone involved in the ASUO at that time, who sat on a hiring committee for a job in the ASUO that I didn’t get, told me to apply for the internship program. That’s the reason I applied is because someone reached out to me and told me about it. And so this year I think we’ll see some pretty exciting expansion in terms of our intern program, and the ASUO has already taken steps this year to expand the internship program. ASUO interns can not only be found in the ASUO now, but now, this year, there’s an inaugural (Climate Justice League) internship within the ASUO internship program. There will be interns working within student programs … that also brings more students into the ASUO.
KT: I think the whole bottom line is trying to reach out to students where they are … trying to find a way to engage more freshmen.
BE: Katie and I will be spending the next seven or eight weeks visiting student programs and just … showing them that we do prioritize student programs.
ODE: Now that University President Richard Lariviere has postponed the New Partnership legislation until next year, how will you work with him and those around you in the ASUO to make state legislation better for students?
BE: Many of the values we discussed during our campaign we will certainly bring to those conversations. We haven’t had a chance to meet with President Lariviere yet, but he did reach out to us and we will be meeting with him within the next week. So I imagine that will be a topic of discussion … I think we are definitely open-minded and want to have a collaborative discussion, and I think that the fact that it was postponed until next February just gives us more time to work with President Lariviere.
KT: I think working with the administration is really important here, opening the dialogue between the ASUO and students … I know that Ben and I have taken a stance throughout the election that we do not want to see the University of Oregon turned into a private institution. We understand the New Partnership has pros and cons, and there are ways to work with the New Partnership when it comes to restructuring … I think we all agree that the system isn’t working and we need a better system, so what is that system?
ODE: What type of safety changes would you propose in lieu of the Department of Public Safety becoming a sworn police force?
BE: We actually just came from a (Associated Students) Presidential Advisory Council meeting where one of the topics of discussion was the Campus Policing Initiative and how we can improve campus safety, so it’s an ongoing discussion. Honestly, the only discussion in which we’ve taken a firm stance in opposition is not a sworn police force. We’ve taken a firm stance in opposition to an armed police force and proposals that would bring weapons onto campus. But our conversation in the ASPAC meeting was very positive, and there seemed to be pretty broad consensus around the issue of weapons on campus. And actually, multiple stakeholders expressed that they do not want weapons on campus … so we’ll discuss that more and other changes … make students safer and prevent crime on campus.
KT: I think that what we’re going to work towards is making sure DPS does not, in fact, become an armed police force; students passed a ballot measure saying they don’t want that … there is more education that needs to happen between all stakeholders around what it means for DPS to be a sworn police force, so I think we’ll continue those conversations.
ODE: There are some people coming in from the other slate, as well as some other people who will continue to work who were in support of that side. How do you anticipate integrating views from those returning from this year’s Senate and people who ran on Students United into your administration?
BE: I think I said something along the lines of, ‘We need more civility.’ (referencing a past interview) We need people who are willing to listen to one another and to build consensus, and I would apply that same answer to this question. I think that relationships are just incredibly important, and if we remember that at the end of the day we are all ultimately working for the same boss — the 24,000 students we represent on this campus — then I am confident that we can collaborate and listen to one another and ultimately find common ground … I have a lot of respect for all of them (Students United supporters), and I look forward to working with them and listening to their views and perspectives.
KT: I know within the senators we ran on our slate, we really tried our hardest to go out and get representatives from a variety of different communities … we don’t expect them to agree with us on everything. I know that they aren’t … we’re all going to have times when we disagree and agree on things, and I think that a lot of the time that’s an asset … we can hear things we may not have heard
about before. But I think it also comes down to we have to be civil and open those lines of communication, and if we do disagree on something, being able to talk about it in a civil way and have individual conversations … work things out so no one walks out hurt or turned off by the process.
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