Three contend for top spot on next year's UA

Newcomer battles two veterans At least three members of next year's Undergraduate Assembly will vie for the position of UA chairperson on Thursday at the annual transition meeting. College juniors Lance Rogers and Eric Tienou and Wharton junior Gil Beverly announced on Sunday night that they will seek the UA's top post. Rogers, who had the most votes of all College candidates in last week's UA elections, said his goals for the position would be threefold. A member of the UA since his freshman year, Rogers said he would focus first on improving the UA's internal workings and eliminating the political infighting that has at times crippled the body this year. "We will create a more cohesive body that is able to work together and accomplish things in a timely manner," he said. The second part of Rogers' platform would deal with communications between the UA and its constituents, he said. "We want to reach out to the students, explain to them what the UA is, what it does, and how it can help them," Rogers said. Finally, Rogers said he would push the body to take a more active stance on issues than in the past. "The third part of the program is to go ahead and take care of students' concerns after we receive feedback from the students," he said. Rogers said he has also been working on a system where each UA representative would serve as a liaison to a University department, and a way of disciplining UA members who do not participate actively in the body's affairs. Tienou, who also served on this year's UA, said he would continue to pursue the same goal next year that he has this year -- simply, to try to solve whatever problems face students at the University. "If we have any problems that affect undergraduates on this campus, then we really should go after them," he said. "The number one mission of the UA is to be a kind of liaison between undergraduates and the administration." Tienou, like Rogers, said communication between the UA and other campus groups is essential to a successful term. "I'm really interested in taking care of communication within the body and communication between the body and activities on campus," he said. While most of the newly elected body is excited about next year, Tienou said it would hurt them in the long run if the new UA does not proceed methodically from the outset. "Take it slow for the first month," he said. "That month is crucial in determining what we're going to do next year. Don't go out and try to do as many things as possible [in the first month]." Although Beverly has not served on the UA before this year, he said that would not make a difference in his campaign for chairperson. "I don't think that anyone holds the UA in such high esteem at this point that not having been on it will really hurt that much," he said. Beverly said he would prefer to reveal the details of his platform at the transition meeting, which will be held Thursday at 8 p.m. in the UTV-13 studio. But he added that he had spoken to Wharton junior Dan Debicella, this year's UA chairperson, for ideas on the position. Debicella said he endorsed Tienou for the job, calling him the "best UA member this year." He added that Beverly would also be an excellent chairperson. But he said Rogers was unfit for any UA office.