Wharton grad student elected GAPSA pres.

Wharton doctoral student Ari Brose was nominated and elected the new president of the Graduate and Professional Student Assembly last night. She is replacing David Mestre, a fifth year astronomy graduate student who resigned from the position December 31. Brose had been serving as interim president since Mestre first announced his resignation in November. "I'm going to throw myself into it but I'm going to need a lot of help," Brose told the members of GAPSA at a meeting last night. Brose said she was originally apprehensive about accepting the position. But now she said she feels confident about her appointment. "I feel a little overwhelmed ," said Brose. "But I'm glad I'll be able to give something back to the University." GAPSA members said they are enthusiastic about their new president. "I'm glad to be working in partnership with her," Graduate Student Association Council President Bronwyn Beistle said. Mestre was rumored to have accepted a job at NASA in order to complete his doctoral work. According to Brose, though, Mestre does not have a job at NASA. "It was a personal decision," said Brose. "He's pursuing other educational opportunities." The GAPSA meeting continued with the proposal of a committee for the creation of a graduate student cafe. A group of Wharton School students will be conducting the market research and will provide a preliminary report to GAPSA. Several GAPSA members expressed their desire for a cafe -- or another location where graduate students could meet, and also receive information about different activities and clubs. "We have no central place where we can communicate with all of the graduate students," sixth-year medical student Erick Santos said. A teaching center that would provide a mentor service for teaching assistants was also proposed at the meeting. The center would sponsor workshops, along with being a resource network for graduate students. The proposal will be discussed in more detail at next month's meeting.