Grad Gold

You still have less than 90 minutes to be and for LSU. Get yourself and your friends to the Tigerlink ballot and give It's Time/Grad Gold candidates your top ranks!

With apologies to Rage Against the Machine's "Guerrilla Radio":

It has to start somewhere.
It has to start sometime.
What better place than here?
What better time than now?

POLLS ARE OPEN - IT'S GO(LD) TIME!

We continue with our next Grad School Senate candidate on the Grad Gold/It's Time slate:

"I’m Jessie Fay Parrott, and I’m getting my MSc in Geography here at LSU. I specialize in many things climate change, and it’s my passion to educate about it! I got my BA in environmental and sustainability studies and Anthropocene management from Bard College at Simon’s Rock beautiful western Massachusetts. I’m bi, Jewish, and Cuban, and grew up in Brooklyn, New York where I became frustrated with my public education system and the state of the climate crisis. As a young girl I became inspired to pursue a career in science and curriculum content development as an adaptation to the climate crisis. 

I’m the president of the Geography and Anthropology Society and I love my LSU community. Getting to know my fellow grad students, it has become very important to me that in running for senate I remain the best advocate for my peers as I can. Grad students are too often forgotten in university communities. As a protector of labor policy and new member of the United Campus Workers of Louisiana Union, I promise you that I will stand by my morals and fight for our rights in this position.

I am thankful that I was raised by strong, compassionate people in my personal and academic communities to be an assertive and radically empathetic person. I believe that I am the right candidate for senate to represent the graduate school, and it’s time to keep fighting for our rights and a safe, prosperous campus."

We continue the It's Time/Grad Gold Senate slate with one of our incumbents, the Grad School delegation's working-class hero:

"Hello, fellow graduate students! I’m Adam Dohrenwend, a second year PhD student in Geography originally from Upstate New York. Prior to LSU, I completed my MA in Geography at the University of Kansas in May 2019. For my undergraduate education I earned a BA in Geography at the State University of New York, College at Geneseo. I have held leadership positions in the planning of many large events, Greek organizations, local election campaigns, scholarly organizations, and a community theatre organization.

As a Senator (and a member of UCW-LA — a labor union for higher education workers in Louisiana), I’m committed to fee reductions and stipend increases. Fees need to be lowered further and collapsed into tuition — something that would immediately result in very significant increases to take-home pay for the many graduate students on assistantships. Furthermore, the lack of quality and affordable health coverage offerings for graduate assistants needs to be at the center of attention. LSU’s poor overall funding levels limit the accessibility and potential of the university’s graduate programs. As a member of the Graduate Affairs Working Group, I succeeded in advocating for the inclusion of these goals in our report for the Graduate School’s new strategic plan.

Many of LSU’s biggest challenges are rooted in the state’s disinvestment from higher education. It’s Time to do something about it. Mia LeJeune, the ticket’s candidate for SG President, is uniquely positioned to make change at the State Capitol, get LSU out of the ditch, and finally improve working conditions for all graduate students! I hope to be able to help her from the Student Senate and I hope we both can count on your vote this Wednesday!"