Narrow field for this year's UB Council elections

The UB Council's lone student position might be the most direct interaction the student body has with administrative leadership, but this month's election for the high-profile advisory board has yielded a small group of three potential representatives.

Vying for the student seat this year will be Todd Chard, Jenna Chrisphonte and Peter Rizzo. The three-day election starts March 20. Rizzo is the only undergraduate running.

The council consists of 10 members, nine of whom are appointed to seven-year terms by the governor, and one student who is elected to an annual term by both graduates and undergrads.

The council's main objective is to review and make recommendations on general plans to UB President John B. Simpson. That includes budgets, buildings and grounds, academic program and faculty, student admissions and student activities, safety and housing.

Last year's elected representative, Jonathan Yedin, is graduating this spring and said he is grateful for the opportunity to be part of the council.

"I wish I could run again," he said. "It was a great experience and I gained a lot of insight on what President Simpson's vision is for this school."

Jennifer Wantz, assistant director in the Office of Student Life, said she expected about 10-15 candidates this year, as opposed to last year's six. Few of the students who showed an interest in running, however, actually petitioned.

One of this year's candidates, Todd Chard, is currently in graduate school for law and social work and is also a Resident Advisor. He has been in the Army's ROTC program since receiving his B.A. from UB in 2000 and is an alumni advisor for the fraternity Phi Kappa Psi.

Chard said the reason he wants to be a part of the UB Council is to work with the students of the university.

"The students have a voice," he said. "Most importantly, I have exposure to all students, undergrads that I am an RA for and graduate students whom I am in school with."

The second candidate running this year is Jenna Chrisphonte, a graduate law student who received her B.A. in history and French from UB in 2002.

She said she would like the opportunity to be elected as student representative in order to learn more about economic and educational policy as well as to take an active role against tuition increases.

Chrisphonte said she promises to "remain true to my working-class roots and never vote in favor of tuition increases that place a heavier burden on many students who are currently doing their best to make ends meet."

The third candidate is Peter Rizzo, a junior English major and environmental design minor and current SUNY SA delegate. Rizzo has been heavily involved in various affairs throughout the UB community and said he sees the UB Council position as "an opportunity to further impact the university."

Rizzo said his major objective in this race is to make informed, conscientious decisions for the betterment of UB as a whole.

As it is each year, many students are in the dark over the UB Council elections.

"I wasn't really aware of the University Council elections, or exactly what they are all about," said Larry Cronyn, a sophomore cognitive social science major.

Colleen Cluckey, a senior speech pathology major, said she had "no idea there was even an election going on."

Yedin said this year's race has added because UB is at a crossroads for finalizing UB2020, the roadmap for UB's next 20 years. He said whoever is elected as next year's representative will have a lot to do with finalizing all those plans that will really affect what happens here in the future.

Chard, Chrisphonte, and Rizzo will each have two weeks to campaign on campus. Elections are scheduled to run online from March 20 at 9 a.m. to March 22 at midnight. All registered students are eligible to vote.

The winner of this year's election will be announced on the morning of March 23.

Students can get to know their candidates before voting by logging onto UBLearns and typing "University Council" into the search area of the courses tab. The site will offer more information about the council, the candidates and to how to vote.