Justin Patrizio

Justin Patrizio is a third year Philosophy student and an independent ASUCD Senator. Justin was an independent candidate for ASUCD Senate in the Fall 2008 ASUCD Election.

The following is an excerpt from his campaign website http://www.projectnosh.com/senate:

"I have already begun working with organizations on campus to improve student life. When elected, I hope to continue working on the following projects already under way:

Increasing Accessibility to Financial Aid Information

I hope to implement a quarterly seminar series dedicated to educating students about financial aide options as well as budgeting and debt repayment. These seminars should also include information about private loans, savings/investment accounts, and credit. This program would be a combined effort between ASUCD and the UCD Financial Aid Office, and would consist of frequent (bi-monthly, if not weekly) short, informational meetings held on campus in public areas. The goals would be to make financial aid and information about finances in general more available to students, hopefully making life easier for the students of UC Davis.

Going Green

Working with campus organizations like R4 recycling services, Project Compost, and the Environmental Planning and Protection Commission (EPPC) I will work to reduce the carbon footprint of individual ASUCD Units (like the coffee house, student store, bike barn, etc...) and the University as a whole. I hope to improve recycling and decrease waste campus-wide, as well as work to bring Davis even further towards the forefront of sustainable living. Students, along with residents of Davis and the City Council, need to work together as a community to organize programs the reduce waste in order to increase sustainability. With the support of the community and the resources that exist within the University, I am confident that we as a community can become leaders in the fight for a better, greener future.

Increasing Campus-wide Wireless Internet Coverage

Working with ASUCD Senator Joe Chatham, I will continue on the path that he and others have to a newer, more up to date and powerful campus wireless network. I hope to install new broadcast antennae regularly, and decrease the dead spots in places like lecture halls and the arboretum. There is some dissention among faculty members as to the potential impact of wireless Internet access in lecture halls like Sci-Lec 123 and Chem 194, but I personally believe that all corners of our campus should be networked effectively. I plan to lobby against opponents to this proposition, and hope to garner support from campus units other than ASUCD, as well as from the student body, in order to convince the administration to move forward.

More generally, I hope to increase student involvement in campus projects and programs. The best way to do this is to increase accessibility and information, and discourage the uneven distribution of resources and political power that slates like L.E.A.D. and other past organizations have depended on. I believe all students deserve the same opportunity to get involved, and the same rules regarding resources should apply to everyone, not just those running independent. L.E.A.D. has an infrastructure set up that consistently grows year after year and this gives each L.E.A.D. candidate a distinct edge over the competition. Slates are divisive and can encourage candidates to conform to the ideals of the slate in order to improve their chances of winning. I am opposed to the idea that conformation and subordination to a party or slate somehow entitles a candidate to greater resources"

2008-11-11 23:32:48   Him and Greg will do good work on the Senate. (Assuming, of course, that the independents win any seats) —JoseBleckman