Who’s going to be in attendance at the Electoral Commission Pageant on Sunday?
Count the majority of the SGA out. They will still be in Atlanta recruiting students for the next school year.
This year’s pageant will feature freshman and graduate students vying for several vacant attendant and senator positions. And many may find it hard to stay in town with the first major football classic on the same weekend.
“We weren’t even thinking about the game,” said Catherine Jefferson, a program specialist for the student union, about the same-day scheduling.
Initially, the pageant and the game were scheduled to start on Saturday.
“We moved it back to Sunday because of the Atlanta game,” Jefferson said.
More than 100 people are hoping to fill 11 positions such as freshman and graduate attendant, as well as one graduate and eight freshman senator positions. Catherine Jefferson said the pageant is a way for the students, who are mostly new to campus, to get themselves known to others on campus.
“It’s a way to put a name and a face together,” she said. “And it’s a lot of people.”
Shanita Webb, a Senator from Atlanta, said by seeking positions, the new students are already ahead of their counterparts.
“It shows a lot of initiative for them wanting to do something the first three weeks on campus,” said Webb, a senior nursing student.
SGA Vice President Virgil A. Miller said most of the high-ranking officials are going to be in Atlanta on Sunday for recruiting events, but that the organization will be well represented.
“We’ve urged the staff to show support to the candidates and the electoral commission,” said the 22-year-old Public Health graduate student from West Palm Beach.
While campaign posters and bullhorn-carrying candidates have sprouted up on campus, Webb said the fire is not there like it was in previous classes.
“They’re not out there throwing candy and chicken (on the set),” she said. “(The campaigns) are not as flamboyant as previous campaigns. .But from what I’ve heard, some of them sound really serious about the jobs.”