Oregon Daily Emerald: What’s your year and major?
Dan Occhipinti: Sophomore, majors in political science and philosophy.
Emerald: Do you belong to any groups or activities around campus?
Occhipinti: I’m on the Dean’s List with a 4.15 accumulative GPA; I own and operate Oregon Study Buddy Services, which is a small business, local in Eugene; I’m pursuing a professional distinction in analytical reasoning through the University Career Center; I graduated from the Metaprinciple Leadership Institute, which is a national thing; I’m the vice president of Beta Theta Pi fraternity; I tutor freshman and sophomore students, helping them develop argumentative writing abilities; and I helped, organized the recent Miss Greek philanthropic event, with all the proceeds going to SASS.
Emerald: Substance Abuse…
Occhipinti: Students Against Sexual Assault.
Emerald: Why are you interested in student government?
Occhipinti: Love politics, decided to get involved, make a difference.
Emerald: How will you figure out how to spend the surplus?
Occhipinti: Well, it’s going to be a combination of the impartial approach to various student groups and organizations, combined with the critical thinking of who needs it, who wants it, why — cost benefit analysis there — and then an overall just proactive agenda to make the campus a better and safer place.
Emerald: Let me throw a scenario out: If a student group comes to the senate and says ‘we’re doing an event, we want some surplus money,’ what are some of the standards you might hold to them in order for them to get there?
Occhipinti: Well, I’d want to know how much the campus is involved, what benefits they really see coming out of whatever event they’re looking to do, combined with how much they’re asking for, obviously. Let’s see, what was the question, what criteria would I set?
Emerald: Yeah, what are some of the standards you would have for them as a group in order for them to get the surplus money?
Occhipinti: If I feel that they make a case that it benefits the University, or a specific demographic at the University, and it fits reasonably with the budget that we have, I think that’s all that it’s going to take.
Emerald: You say if it benefits. What would you see as a benefit to students?
Occhipinti: This is good, this is good. Well, I’d like to see student organizations enlivening the campus, right? And I’m also particularly interested in making the campus safer, especially after last year. There were a series of sexual assaults I remember reading about. So anything that’s aimed at educating or preventing problems for the student body, that’s going to take a high priority on my list.
Emerald: How will you interact with student groups?
Occhipinti: What do you mean interact with them?
Emerald: How will you communicate with them, how will you involved, how will you know about the student groups?
Occhipinti: Well, I’d like to make available, and obviously they can get it if they want it, but my e-mail address, and definitely set up appointments any time somebody would like to come in and discuss anything, from what they want to do, to what I see happening in the next couple years, any kind of political agenda questions that they have for me. And also, I’m sure I’m going to have questions for them too. So I’ll be contacting the groups, asking them what they’re looking for from the ASUO senate and if there’s anything I in particular can do to help them in the next year.
Emerald: There are quite a few groups out there, do you think you’ll be able to communicate with all of them?
Occhipinti: I’m going to proactively try to communicate with as many of them as I can. Obviously, I’m probably not even aware of some of the groups, but it’s a matter of — I’m going to do the best I can to be in touch with them, but they’re going to have to make an effort to be in touch with me.
Emerald: How will you work toward becoming familiar with all the student groups?
Occhipinti: Well, I’d like to go in and sit in on meetings for the various groups, if they let me, and just hear what they have to say. As well as just taking a proactive approach to attending seminars and other campus events hosted by different groups, different demographics participating.
Emerald: What are the most important issues facing the students you’ll be representing?
Occhipinti: Well, one is definitely the safety of campus, particularly women on campus, in light of last year’s events. Number two, I think, is the increased, what are they called — they’re tacking money onto our tuition.
Emerald: Surcharges?
Occhipinti: Right. Increased surcharges, and they’re trying to — it’s a balance between coming up with money, right, but also, we can’t just expect people to keep paying more and more and more. So that’s definitely an issue that I think is on a lot of people’s minds and one that’s definitely on my mind.
Emerald: With the tuition surcharges, how will you work to make the student senate more involved in that process of deciding if there’s surcharges or deciding if there’s increased tuition? Are you going to try to extend the power of the senate or use lobbying efforts?
Occhipinti: If I had a particular stance on it, I would propose that to the senate, open it up for discussion and hopefully we could collectively reach a position. And if we disagree with it then yeah, definitely active lobbying of the administration, and I think it’s really important to keep communication open too, between the constituents, that is the student body, the student government — executive and senate — and the administration. Because everybody’s got their interests. I’m representing, or I’m hopefully representing, the student body to try and balance their needs with the administration’s financial needs.
Emerald: So, maybe more of a symbolic ‘we’re against these tuition surcharges’ lobbying effort by the senate. What’s the most important part of Section 5 of the Student Senate Rules and why?
Occhipinti: Section 5 of the Student Senate Rules? I can’t think of what section that is.
Emerald: That’s the senate duties — the duties of the senators.
Occhipinti: What’s the most important?
Emerald: Yeah, the most important part.
Occhipinti: I wish I had a list of those in front of me. I’m trying to think. I don’t — the responsibilities of the senate?
Emerald: Yeah, just the duties of student senators.
Emerald: Well, our primary objective is to distribute, what is it, $8 million in surplus funds? And so, there’s going to be high emphasis there on, basically, just fundamental debate. Examining every issue, every point of view, at least as best as we can, and try to come up with the most beneficial allocation.