The vice president both directs and assists the Student Association's recognized clubs and student organizations. The vice president advises and oversees the needs of these organizations.
Name: Lyle Selsky
Year: Senior
Major: History; minors in economics and education
Party: Spirit
Current SA position: External affairs liaison
Extracurricular activities: Mock trial member, UB Improv member, Sigma Chi Omega president
Relevant experience: Captain for one semester of mock trial, events coordinator of UB Improv and secretary last year, direct supervisor of summer camp
During Lyle Selsky's winter break his freshman year, his father passed away. Seven days later, he had to go back to school. He said SA's mock trial club helped him through the difficult time in his life and allowed him to excel as both a student and person.
Selsky calls mock trial his family, and the vice presidential candidate wants every student to have the opportunity he had at UB - to find a core group of people to depend upon during his or her time in college.
"These families and these clubs can really have such a huge and significant impact upon the students and really make them feel comfortable and feel at home and really help them excel here at the university and get them through adversity as great as that or even more or even less," Selsky said.
One of the biggest changes Selsky, a resident of the University Heights for three years and counting, wants to make from the current e-board is to assertively reach out to students who don't know about SA. He called himself the "rare South Campus student" who "actually gets involved with the SA."
"Currently, in my opinion, it's a travesty right now the amount of students involved in the Student Association," Selsky said. "I can bring the Student Association to [outsiders] and really expand the Student Association to every single student because I'm the average student."
Selsky stresses the wide range of experience he would bring to the table as vice president: a seven-week summer camp leader of over 60 kids, president of his fraternity and active member of mock trial and UB Improv.
Selsky has gotten a full and well-rounded experience at UB, which is exactly what he wants to bring to his fellow students.
Name: Christian Andzel
Year: Junior
Major: History and political science
Party: Forward
Current SA Position: Government relations coordinator
Extracurricular activities: UB Students for Life, UB Conservatives, Latin American Student Association, PODER Latinos Unidos and BASIC
Relevant experience: President and co-founder of UB Students for Life, founder and co-president of UB Conservatives, Erie County Republican Hispanic Coalition Young Adult Outreach
During his three years at UB, Christian Andzel has been all about one thing: advocacy.
He's been a passionate advocate and member of over 10 clubs, two of which he founded. He's seen clubs flourish and fought for student freedoms. He wants to continue that progression as vice president, who is in charge of SA's 130-plus clubs.
He's created a relationship with the University Police Chief, Gerald Schoenle, and Erie County Sheriff Tim Howard to improve South Campus safety.
As vice president, he plans to stay visible, attending club meetings and events and keeping his office hours open on weekends.
He founded UB Conservatives seven months ago, and now it's the largest political force on campus, according to Andzel.
The first plan he'll put into action in office is "Freshmen First." Andzel wants to recruit a group of 10 to 15 freshmen and sophomores to attend future SA meetings with him. He recently started a Facebook page called "Freshmen for Forward" to directly involve freshmen in the election.
"This position to me is more than a stipend or a power; this to me is about leading the next generation of leaders," Andzel said. "And because of that reason, I am the first candidate in many years to officially reach out to freshmen."
He will bring his experience working with young adopted children from Colombia, coaching freshmen soccer and tutoring underclassmen in AP courses at Clarence High School to be a strong candidate to mentor young UB students.
Many question Andzel's objectivity and whether he's politically too far to the right. The anti-abortion activist said his UB Students for Life club was discriminated against during his time at UB, and it would be "hypocritical" to do the same to other clubs.
"As you've seen with my two clubs that I've specifically led, the only thing they've done is grow," Andzel said. "And that's what I want to bring to the Student Association and to other clubs. It doesn't matter what their political affiliation is. It doesn't matter what their members or leaders believe."
Andzel believes in overall student and club progression, and he is enthusiastic to bring that to the role of vice president.
Email: news@ubspectrum.com
