At the conclusion of Wednesday night's Undergraduate Council of Students meeting, President Rahim Kurji '05 announced he will not seek another term.
Kurji said his decision was an emotional one that he considered throughout the semester. This year's UCS has accomplished more than any other in the recent past, he said.
"I've loved serving the community," Kurji told UCS members. "I will continue to do that next year, and hopefully serve the nation and the world in the future as well."
Kurji said he plans to continue to participate in University governance next year by working directly with President Ruth Simmons and Interim Vice President for Campus Life and Student Services David Greene.
After Kurji's announcement, four UCS members told The Herald they plan to run for UCS president - Brian Bidadi '06, representative at large; Sonia Gupta '06, admissions and students services chair; Joel Payne '05, secretary; and Ari Savitzky '06, campus life chair.
Bidadi said he had been planning to run for president even before Kurji decided not to enter the race. The cornerstones of his campaign will be "diversity" and "equality," Bidadi said. He said he supports opening up the Third World Transition Program, making the campus more accessible to students with disabilities and extending the Curricular Advising Program and small seminars to sophomores.
Bidadi said he is most proud of his work to allocate $100,000 this semester toward short-term improvements to the campus's infrastructure to aid disabled students. He also cited as past successes his work restoring the mural on the first floor of Faunce House and increasing the visibility of student artwork.
Gupta is running on an unofficial ticket with vice-presidential nominee Charley Cummings '06, currently the academic and administrative affairs chair.
This year, Gupta, along with Savitzky, worked toward initiating 24-hour study spaces, satellite fitness facilities and improved dining hours, to be implemented later this semester. Gupta also said she was particularly proud of her committee's work on the Talent Quest program, which sends Brown alums to selected high schools across the country to recruit "talented students of color and economically disadvantaged students," according to its Web site.
A Gupta/Cummings administration will focus on diversity through better student services, the candidates said.
"I think we do a great job talking about diversity, but we don't utilize diversity," Cummings said.
Gupta added, "It's about providing something for the community that makes them want to come together."
Payne, the only member of the Class of 2005 currently in the running for president, began his work on UCS as communications coordinator last year. This year, he established the Community Service Task Force, which organized a clothing drive last semester and is planning a Student Workers Appreciation Week in April.
Payne said a more personalized form of student government and diversity, including "intellectual diversity," will shape his campaign. He said the campus should be divided into quadrants, with students living in each quadrant building a relationship with a particular UCS representative.
"I feel like a lot of the campus is disenchanted with what we're doing on campus," he said. "If I'm elected, they're going to get the honest opinion of the UCS. ... We're definitely going to confront issues head on. I think there's a hesitance on council sometimes to govern, and I think that's unhealthy."
Payne also said he would like to establish a committee to examine how conservative voices can better be heard on campus, even though "we may not always agree with students from a conservative slant."
Savitzky was the only candidate to say last night that his decision to seek the presidency had been contingent on Kurji's decision not to run. He said he is most proud of bringing the New York Times and Boston Globe to the dining halls, sponsoring a UCS resolution on same-sex marriage and working toward better communication between students and the Department of Public Safety in the wake of recent bias-related incidents.
Savitzky also worked with Gupta's student services committee on establishing 24-hour study spaces and satellite fitness centers and renovating study spaces within dormitories.
Savitzky said he was moved to run by a broad vision for UCS. "I don't think student government is a joke - I think we can accomplish things," he said. "I think we can give students a seat at the table in every decision this University makes. That is the goal. And I think the University would be better for it."
