The United Minorities Council, an umbrella organization of 17 more narrow campus groups, selected its next governing body Monday, with College junior Terry Shu leading the group as its next chairwoman.
"These positions are something people take seriously ... I think we put together a great board," Shu said.
Shu will take the place of outgoing UMC Chairman and College senior Carlos Rivera-Anaya.
"I'm really excited for this new leadership," Rivera-Anaya said. "Successful organizations [are] comprised of dynamic individuals that complement each other well, and that's the case for this new board."
The UMC is an interracial alliance whose goal is to promote cross-cultural awareness through events such as Unity Week. Each of the 17 groups represented by the UMC had one vote in electing the 11-member governing body.
The new UMC vice chairman, replacing Shu will be College junior Rocio Polanco. College sophomore Shakirah Simley will round out the executive board, serving as political chairwoman.
"We had an amazing year last year," Polanco said. "A lot of us would like to continue that energy and harness it into bigger and better things."
Shu and the other executive board members were positive about the new Penn administration, especially President Amy Gutmann.
"Her whole access message is something that really speaks to us," Shu said. "The fact that she's willing to make time in her schedule to deal with the issues that are facing us right now speaks a lot for what her interests are and what she cares about."
Shu lauded Rivera-Anaya's leadership as UMC chairman. Rivera-Anaya oversaw Unity Week, a forum on hate crimes and a campaign to inform the Penn community about the crisis in Sudan.
"I want to continue the progress that Carlos has made in dealing with minority issues and political activism on campus," Shu said.
Shu also stressed the need for greater communication within and outside the UMC.
"I'm also hoping to further communication and find common ground," Shu said. "The UMC might consist of 17 constituency groups, but we don't just work within ourselves. We want to branch out on campus."
Over the past year, the UMC has focused on improving minority-student and faculty retention, finding space for resource centers and stimulating ethnic and other minority groups that lack departmental organization.
"They're not fixed, but we made tremendous strides on every single one of those aspects," Rivera-Anaya said.
Shu affirmed her commitment to those issues, as well others. She cited interracial discrimination amongst minorities as "an issue we don't really address that much."
Polanco emphasized the sense of community that was attained at the UMC during the previous year.
"We really achieved unity through social events and having fun together," Polanco said. "Everybody worked well together and had a common vision."
Along with the executive board, the UMC governing body will be composed of Admission Co-Chairs Zohra Ahmed and Kambili Moukwa, Programming Co-Chairs Elaine Braithwaite, Jess Greer and Seher Sikandar, Corresponding Secretary Katrina Jurn, Recording Secretary Ajay Gupta and Treasurer Natalie Vargas.
