Hesslen and Rodriguez join existing sophomore and senior class presidents
Hope Hesslen
Freshman class President
Why did you want to run for president?
I really wanted to run for SGA because I see the importance in helping out my peers and being connected with them, and I don’t know a better way to be more involved and just have a say and a voice and be able to listen and be approachable.
Have you ever been involved with student government?
I was class president all the years in high school, and I was always very involved in student government. Being involved in SGA in college is always something I’ve really wanted to do. I wasn’t sure if freshmen could even run, and when I found out, I thought it was for me. I had to do it.
What are some policies you have planned to start or follow up on?
I think we’re just going to really try to make things run more smoothly. I’m excited to be a part of that. I know the Lovernich Commons is something they recently did, and so I think we’re going to try to tackle another big goal. I’m not sure what’s that going to be yet, but I’m really excited to see.
Do you have any plans for your class town halls?
My goal with the town halls is to make it very informative, where they leave knowing what’s going on and know us a little better, and they feel like they can talk to us. Maybe give them some opportunities where they can have a voice, too, and it’s not just us.
How did you end up at Pepperdine?
I’m from Arkansas, but my grandparents are originally from California, and they talked it up. Since seventh grade this has been my dream school.
What’s your major?
I want to do the integrated marketing and communications major, but I’m gong to declare after my freshman year, so we’ll see.
What other activities are you involved in?
I’ll hopefully be going to Lausanne next year, and they’ve talked about having a representative overseas. I would really like to be the representative and still be involved. I’m also in a house group and Campus Ministry.
What are you most excited about working with SGA?
I am very excited to represent my class because I feel like it’s an awesome opportunity to be there for everyone, and I’m a really big people-person. Anything that I can help out with I love.
Cassandra Rodriguez
Junior class President
Why did you want to run for president?
After going abroad in Argentina and feeling a connection with everyone, I craved that when I came back. I didn’t know how to get involved to continue that feeling. Then SGA popped up, I wanted to get close to the SGA people and get a chance to reach out to everybody.
Have you ever been involved with student government?
I had never before thought about SGA as an option, but I’m liking it so far.
What are some policies you have planned to start or follow up on?
Now I’m seeing that this isn’t completely possible, but what I ran on was getting the leftover Caf food sent to homeless people or underprivileged people. But I realize that’s not really part of an SGA thing because we’re more about the students … This year, SGA is working on a lot of loneliness, especially for juniors who come back and don’t feel connected to Malibu or to the people that went everywhere else, so we’re working on integrating policies that will prevent that.
Do you have any plans for your class town halls?
We’re going to do a question-answer with a panel for town halls to see what people want. I know that’s the goal of every student government, but I think we have a setup where we’re going to do a good job of including everybody and allowing people to speak up if they want to. And it will be the people that feel the loneliness that will want to change it, so they’ll be the ones to speak up.
How did you end up at Pepperdine?
I’m from Denver, Colo., and I toured before I was a sophomore. I had this image that you could throw rocks into the ocean and that it was so beautiful. Coming into my senior year, I knew I needed to do more research. And when I finally drove out here, I realized it was real, not just an image in my head.
What’s your major?
I’m a psychology major with a Spanish minor.
What other activities are you involved in?
I played club soccer, and this year I’m doing a thing called Active Minds, which is a psychology group about de-stigmatizing mental health issues, and LEAP. But I really just want to delve into SGA.
What are you most excited about working with SGA?
The people in SGA are awesome, and they’re really looking to serve the Pepperdine community.
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Follow Falon Opsahl on Twitter: @FalonGraphic
As published in the Sept. 26 issue of the Pepperdine Graphic.
