Experience, student services highlight Gonzalez ticket

Nicole Castro / Asst. News Director

Running on a platform of experience and outreach to students, Alina and Kevin Gonzalez look forward to the challenges ahead of them if they are elected to be president and vice president of the Student Government Council at Modesto Maidique Campus.

Alina has been a part of three different administrations of Student Government, ranging back to the days of President AJ Meyer, who she worked for as an intern.

During her sophomore year, Alina served as director of international affairs for then SGC-MMC President Anthony Rionda.

She then continued her service in SGA, becoming the chief of staff for current SGC-MMC President Helena Ramirez.

Alina held the position until the beginning of the Spring 2011 semester, where she relinquished the position in order to fill a void left in the vice presidency after the resignation of Nick Autiello last fall.

According to Alina, the rapid transition into vice presidency and the diverse positions she has held along the way have helped her become a better leader and identify key issues that she would like to work on.

Among the most challenging aspects during her vice presidency were dealing with the aftermath of a fall semester where SGC-MMC underwent several scandals that led to internal problems which affected the performance of SGA as a whole.

“I think there was a lot of internal bickering this year and not a lot was done for students. If SGA would come together and look at the bigger picture it could be such a powerful entity,” Alina stated bluntly.

According to her, it is her honest outspokenness which makes her stand out from the other candidates.

“I am very up front,” said Alina, an international relations major who plans on going into nursing once she graduates. “I try to do everything with honesty and integrity, when making decisions I keep in mind which ones are best for students.”

Throughout her time in SGA Alina saw potential and experience in her running mate, Kevin Gonzalez. Both candidates are not related.

Kevin, a senior accounting and finance major, originally served as a College of Business Administration Senator during the Fall semester.

This semester he has worked as SGC-MMC comptroller, where he has gained knowledge of the University’s complex budget deliberations.

“As comptroller I’ve enjoyed making sure that the money is going where it needs to go and with the added power or visibility of vice president, I can help out students even more and fund for education,” said Kevin.

Among one of their biggest commitments to students, the Gonzalez ticket hopes to be able to help students get a great education at a price they can afford.

Alina, who has had to balance her school life while working at places like Nordstrom and Equinox 40 hours a week, believes this experience has helped her relate to students at the University who face similar economic issues.

“I really want to give back to a school that has done so much for me by making sure that I’m representing the students,” she said.

This year’s SGC-MMC presidential race is the first contested election since 2008, but both Alina and Kevin have embraced this competitive atmosphere.

They believe that the more candidates there are running, the higher the chances to ensure the most qualified.

“Competition is always good,” said Alina, “I believe it drives people to go the extra mile to prove that they would be the best choice.”

Kevin emphasized that although it will be a lot more work for the candidates, it’s in the best interest of the student body to have a choice in who they want as the leader of the University.

While both candidates acknowledge that it will be a tough, hard-fought election, they still remain confident.

“I think we will do well and I’m ready to fully dedicate myself to doing the best I can to continue serving the student body in the following year,” said Kevin.

Voting for elections will take place April 5 and 6 online or at designated locations on campus.