Julianna Melendez & Klarissa Palacios
(Henry Kofman / Daily Trojan)
Julianna Melendez and Klarissa Palacios are the presidential and vice presidential duo behind the T.R.U.S.T. platform. With a shared vision of fostering trust and unity within the Undergraduate Student Government and the wider USC community, they are dedicated to enacting long-lasting change on campus.
“We should be able to take full advantage of [the University’s resources], really feel comfortable in our four years of being here [and] making USC a place you call home,” said Melendez, a current USG senator and a junior majoring in international relations.
Through initiatives such as hosting town hall meetings for open dialogue, advocating for increased accessibility in the classroom for students of all backgrounds and fostering collaboration with registered student organizations, they aim to bridge the gap between student concerns and administrative action.
Their top priority of hosting town hall meetings is about becoming “more proactive than reactive when it comes to not just University issues, but any other events that happened, whether that be locally, globally, that affect our student body. That way, [students] have a very accessible platform to express themselves,” said Palacios, who is currently the co-director for USG’s public relations team and a sophomore majoring in law, history and culture.
The ultimate goal is to “address these repeated issues of this year and ensure that they don’t happen again,” Melendez said.
Melendez and Palacios were motivated by their unique lived experiences as first-generation students with accessibility needs. They have both been involved in USG since their respective freshmen years and have seen the organization from multiple perspectives. At each stage, they differentiate themselves by focusing on the intentions behind the change and action they champion.
“These platform points are not only things that we want to change for ourselves here at USC and our peers, but to extend beyond our time here for future generations to come,” Palacios said.
— Shruti Shakthivel
Disclaimer: Palacios formerly served as an opinion writer at the Daily Trojan. She is no longer affiliated with the organization.
Sam Stack & Christian Shaw
(Logan Christianson)
Sam Stack and Christian Shaw summarize their platform with the acronym F.I.G.H.T. O.N., encapsulating a wide slate of policies such as Greek life inclusion, increasing campus culture and RSO training.
Their top priorities center around ending the RSO application freeze and increasing food accessibility.
“That whole process of applying to be an RSO is very, very difficult,” said Stack, the presidential candidate and a junior majoring in communication. “It helps both parties involved to help reopen this up and just ensure that organizations can be registered and can receive funding.”
The pair emphasize their persistence and USG experience as assets for enacting legislation. Stack currently serves as director of Creative Services in USG’s Communications Department. Shaw is currently a senator in the USG senate.
“You have to be able to know when you have to interrupt or when to talk. You have to know in positions when you can’t take no for an answer,” Stack said. “Knowing when to do that and with our knowledge of politics and policy … I think all that culminated together in just a perfect way.”
Their platform is the only one to reference Greek life positively, seeking collaboration with the Department of Public Safety to ensure further safety efforts at parties. The pair also advocates for increasing school spirit by promoting athletic events and on-campus concerts through USG.
“You always hear, ‘We’re not a Southern school. We’re not Michigan, and we don’t have that culture here on campus,’” said Shaw, the vice presidential candidate and a junior majoring in communication. “But the only people that are responsible for that are us as students to bring that back in [and] have that culture. It starts from within.”
— Nick Corral
Bryan Fernandez & Brianna Sanchez
(Henry Kofman / Daily Trojan)
Bryan Fernandez and Brianna Sanchez are running in hopes of restoring the student body’s trust in USG; both admit the disconnect between USG and students and believe addressing the lack of transparency, communication and trust is essential to begin repairing that bond.
“I think what distinguishes us — not even just from this year’s candidates, but candidates in the past — is we really don’t want to give the student body any empty promises. Being in USG, we know what’s feasible in a year and what’s not feasible.” said Sanchez, a sophomore majoring in legal studies.
Sanchez and Fernandez have intentionally put forth a smaller platform in order to focus on achievable and sustainable goals. As current USG members — Fernandez serving as a senator and Sanchez acting as the chair for the Committee on Wellness Affairs, the pawir hopes to sustain their current projects into their next term — projects such as Trojan Fresh grocery stipends, EBT workshops and working closely with the Committee on Wellness Affairs.
As a victim of the recent RSO pause herself, Sanchez said she understands students’ frustrations with the University. Fernandez and Sanchez ensured that upon election, it would be the duo’s first priority to meet with Campus Activities.
“[We’ll meet] with Campus Activities on day one and [be] like, ‘Hey, we ran on this platform, this is what we really want to achieve. Can you help us get to that?’” said Fernandez, a sophomore majoring in public policy.
Furthermore, they plan to appoint their cabinet with the C.A.R.E. platform in mind — community, accessibility, representation and equity; with this, the two hope to select a staff who are passionate about helping with interest projects such as an automatic update feature on the Legislative Branch Project Tracker, and reaching out to assemblies and RSOs to proactively connect them with resources and support.
— Alexa Avila
Dacity & Abitha Nunis
(Daniel Brook / Daily Trojan)
Editors’ note: Dacity and Nunis stepped down from the election Friday afternoon, after this article was published.
Dacity and Abitha Nunis have established a simple yet important campaign goal: to be professional, fun and inclusive. The pair seeks to further diverse representations by running for USG president and vice president.
“There’s never been any candidates that have looked like us in the history of USG,” Dacity said. Dacity is challenging the status quo by running for president under their drag identity and Nunis aims to be a representative voice for students in the Black USC community.
“Our campaign really reflects the intersectional struggles of a lot of people of color and a lot of queer people on campus,” said Dacity, a junior majoring in political science as well as public relations.
One of the issues Dacity brought up is the lack of resources and basic needs available for lower-income students, particularly when it comes to sleep, hygiene and food.
“Despite USC being such a well-endowed, rich school, students are going hungry … students don’t know where to find resources,” Dacity said.
Both candidates believe it is important to acknowledge and hear the voices from all communities at USC.
“We are here to support all of the communities that feel like they may have not been heard in the past as well as the communities who have been heard in the past,” said Nunis, a junior majoring in theater as well as public relations and advertising.
— Nick Virnich
Disclaimer: Dacity formerly served as the digital managing editor of the Daily Trojan. They are no longer affiliated with the organization.
