Following a round of interviews conducted by ASUO, one graduate and undergraduate student have been chosen by ASUO President Chloé Webster and her team to represent the student body with a position on the Board of Trustees. 

Despite ASUO only interviewing 14 out of 60 applicants, the governor’s application is open to anyone who had applied previously, along with anyone who wishes to apply to the governor alone. Unlike the previous application, this one is solely for Gov. Tina Kotek to decide who she will choose for the student trustee positions. 
Letters of endorsement have been written for David Mitrovčan Morgan, an undergraduate student in the College of Arts and Sciences, and Cy Abbott, who is currently working towards his PhD in geography. 

Receiving the stamp of approval from ASUO sets the two students at a higher advantage than anyone else who applied. Webster says she is confident in the recommendations for student trustees made by ASUO. 

“The hope is that the governor will abide by the bills and laws that have passed. We work with the Office of Government affairs, and we have connections with the state government to make sure that the communication is all there and that when this letter is given the governor will feel good about it.” Webster said.

Webster sent her letters of endorsement to Gov. Kotek on Friday, March 1.  

After receiving their nominations from Kotek following her decision, the student trustees will formally present themselves to the Oregon Senate. Both will be sworn in on July 1, 2024. 

Juliana Mujica, a freshman majoring in environmental science, believes that to fully represent the voices of students, the Board of Trustees needs additional student members. 

“Personally, I think that there needs to be at least five students on the Board. Maybe one person to represent each school year,” Mujica said. 
During the 2024-2025 academic year, three student trustees will serve as the voice of the entire student body. This will include current student trustee Ruby Wool, who has served in the position since last June. 

Wool is confident in the choices made by ASUO for their letters of endorsement. 

“The governor allows things within the university to give an endorsement, to show that they’ve sealed off on someone or they have someone who’s worthy of the position. It makes the governor’s position a little bit easier because she has the vote of confidence from the university. They’re there to be another source of vetting in the process,” Wool said. 

Webster acknowledges that Kotek’s decision could swing another way, disregarding ASUO’s recommendations. 

“There’s this benefit if you’ve been signed off by ASUO to be nominated. You went through this whole application process which speaks volumes. There’s still the chance that they aren’t chosen, and we’ve told the people ‘yeah this sucks, your name is going to be thrown in with other names too because other people can apply,’” Webster said.