Students elect Hana Glasser ’15 for CG President and Charlotte Harris ’16 for CG Vice President

By EVELYN TAYLOR-MCGREGOR ’16

News Editor

The election committee announced the winners of the College Government (CG) elections last night at 10 p.m. Voting was open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. online through MyWellesley.

Hana Glasser ’15 won the election for College Government President and Charlotte Harris ’16 was elected College Government Vice President.

Six of the eight Cabinet positions were uncontested, and all six of the uncontested candidates won. Students elected Katherine Tran ’15 for Chief Justice, Timothy Boatwright ’16 for Multicultural Affairs Coordinator (MAC), Eugene Lee ’15 for Student Bursar, Alice Yuan ’15 for Director of on Campus Affairs, Beth Feldstein ’15 for the Chair of Political and Legislative Awareness (CPLA) and Adeline Lee ’16 for the Chair of Communications and College Government Finances.

The Student Leadership Stipend (SLS) won the ballot initiative over Wellesley S.M.I.L.E.S. and will receive $11,000 next year to compensate RAs, HPs and CG cabinet members on financial aid.

    The results of the election were announced last night at the election party in Pendleton Atrium. The candidates were asked to accompany the election committee to a separate room in order to open envelopes with the results inside. Candidates could then either leave or return to the party as Joy Das ’14, the outgoing CG president, announced the winners.

Prior to the election, Glasser served as a senator for two years and the Chair of Communications and College Government Finances for one year. She won the election for CG President over Celeste Zumwalt ’15.

“I really want to make gains in the way that we approach mental illness, push forward projects that will increase equity and make Senate a more collaborative place,” Glasser said.

Harris ran on a platform of communication, collaboration and community. She won the election for CG Vice President over Estelle Kim ’15.

“I’m definitely looking forward to working with the rest of Cabinet and making our ideas really concrete,” Harris said.

Boatwright campaigned on a platform of actively responding to student voices, increasing multicultural space on campus and developing a system of recourse in the case of oppressive interactions with faculty.

“Things are about to change at Wellesley,” Boatwright said after his win.

Feldstein, who also served as the CPLA Chair this academic year, was elected for the position again this year. Feldstein is the only member of the current cabinet who will remain on cabinet for the following year.

“I’m a little sad — the people I worked with this year were so incredible,” Feldstein said.

As part of CG election week, all candidates were required to attend three debates: the Multicultural Presidents’ Council (MPC) debate, the College Government debate and the House Presidents’ Council (HPC) debate.

This year is the the first year that attendance at the debates was required for candidates to appear on the ballot. Ballot initiatives committees were also required to attend the debates. Candidates answered questions posed by leaders of multicultural organizations, current CG Cabinet members and house presidents.

    The MPC debate took place first in Slater International House last Wednesday. In the beginning, candidates delivering opening statements in which they were asked to acknowledge at least one privilege they have.

The first round of questions consisted of four questions for each candidate to answer within 30 seconds. Afterward, the council took two questions from the audience and posed other questions anonymously written on pieces of paper that were passed around the room during the debate.

    Many of the candidates spoke about prioritizing mental health on campus in their platforms. Candidates also spoke about the need for more designated multicultural and safe spaces on campus. In particular, Boatwright plans to help students navigate discriminatory and upsetting interactions with faculty and administrators as part of his campaign platform for MAC.

    The College Government hosted the second debate. The debate focused on leadership skills and initiatives that the candidates would undertake if elected to their positions. The current Cabinet moderated the debate and developed questions centered on how the candidates would use their leadership and organizational skills to push for changes proposed in their campaign platforms. The Cabinet members asked the candidates to list strengths and weaknesses as well as one administrator they would be excited to work with if elected.

    The third and final debate that took place Monday night in Tower Court Great Hall was moderated by the House Presidents’ Council. The debate dealt with issues of community building and campus life at Wellesley. In their opening statements, candidates spoke about how their position or initiative would foster community on campus. The questions focused on reaching out to under-represented groups, such as the Davis scholars, on campus, reducing over programming and encouraging feedback from the student body.

The new Cabinet will take over from previous Cabinet members on April 14 in Senate. The month of transition at the end of the academic year is designed so that students who held the position previously can help new cabinet members in the first month and a half of their one-year term.

“Speaking for all of Cabinet, we’ve all loved serving you this year, and I hope you’ve enjoyed having us,” Das said.