Hello, my name is Matthew Almendras and I am running with Empower UIC for President of Undergraduate Student Government. Our mental health, affording our education, and staying safe on campus are issues I care about and pledge to advocate for because as a student I know what we go through. With your support, I will foster our community and empower OUR voice!

Hello, my name is Michael Fernandes, and I’m running with Empower UIC for Vice President of The Undergraduate Student Government. I am passionate about empowering our student body to ensure every student’s voice at our wonderful university is heard. I love our school, and, with your support, I will work diligently to improve it by advocating for a more affordable, safer, and interactive student experience.

Hey there, My name is Sanyam Kharbanda and I am a sophomore at University of Illinois at Chicago. I am seeking the position for Vice President. One of the main reasons why I am interested in running for Vice president is because I want to infuse AI (artificial intelligence) into the working of USG so we can better understand the problems faced by students of UIC. As a person who is majoring in IDS, I know the immense opportunities that we can harvest by implementing it.

Hello, my name is Juana Cordova. This election cycle, I’m running for USG House of Representatives. There are many issues that UIC students face especially during these troubling two years in the pandemic. In my campaign, I’m focusing on having more representation for transfer students, first-generation students, and Latinx individuals in student government. I’m also interested in safety, UIC sleeping spaces/lounges, and renaming the Richard J. Daley library.

The Supreme Court is the judicial body of Student Government and is empowered to interpret and enforce the Constitution and Statutes of the University of Illinois at Chicago Undergraduate Student Government. The Judicial Branch will be responsible for hearing Elections Code violations and serves as a resource to Student Government for matters related to the Constitution and Bylaws. As the Judicial Branch, the Court may also choose to invoke the power of judicial review. The Supreme Court is presided over by nine Justices and a non-voting Clerk of the Court.

I would destigmatize mental health through building upon resources and initiatives for its accessibility. I aim to broaden the connections between women and femme-identifying students with professionals in academia and the workforce to foster leadership opportunities and insights for the student body. I would be diligent in working with UIC’s Sustainability team in ensuring that we garner a safer and more environmentally friendly campus for our students.

My name is Mahanoor Murtaza, and I am aiming to become a member of the USG House of Representatives. An initiative that I am pursuing through USG is providing scholarships for middle-class students. Oftentimes, scholarships do not apply to middle-class students because they require financial aid. I would like to continue working on my initiative to make more scholarships accessible to students based on merit and not only financial need.

Hello, my name is Tayo Omoniyi, and I am currently a representative on the Diversity and Inclusion Committee of USG. I am a third-year junior, studying biology on the pre-medicine track. My goal as a representative is to advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion on UIC’s campus. I would like to continue my work on USG to continue to provide opportunities for students to seek culturally competent mental health resources.

Campus safety is one of the most important topics that hold value to me. The students of the UIC community deserve to be able to attend school and walk around campus with no fear or doubt in their minds. With my intent to maintain my position within USG, I hope to be able to make safety a top priority!

I am running to be a member of the House of Representatives. I am committed to advocating for underrepresented students and prepared to work with my peers to remove any barriers that hinders their success here at UIC. I would love the opportunity to promote change within the undergraduate community regarding some current issues I am passionate about, including mental health, sustainability and safety on campus, inclusion of all minorities on campus, and freedom of speech.

As a previous Representative of the Undergraduate Student Government and Deputy Chair of the Student Success Committee during the 2021-2022 school year, I made it my mission to make sure students had the resources they needed to be as successful as they could be. My passions lied in making sure students had access to hygiene products and other basic necessities as I believe to be successful academically, personal needs and wellness must betaken care of first. I’d like to continue to provide these resources to UIC Students in the upcoming year as a prospecting Representative.

I am for making UIC the best it can be for the students it serves as well as the community which it is located in. I support efforts toward sustainability, student mental health, and overall student wellbeing.

As a potential candidate for the House of Representatives for Student Government, I will bring change on our campus by focusing on implementing more academic resources such as peer tutors and study spaces to foster student success. I also hope to bring importance to overall wellbeing, especially mental health on campus and increase advocacy and awareness to address mental health during college. My overall aim as a representative will always be to serve my fellow peers of UIC and address their concerns!

Hello! My name is Jair Alvarez, and I am currently a sophomore majoring in political science and minoring in professional writing. I am running for a House of Representative position. I firmly believe that UIC has several internships and research opportunities at its disposal; however, many are unaware of their existence. I hope to establish a universal platform that contains these opportunities for students to explore.

My name is Saba Ali and I am a sophomore running for the House of Representatives. Through my experience of leadership, government, and service, I have learned how to best represent the students and their needs. As a member of the Mental Health Coalition and Diversity and Inclusion Committee, I worked to make more resources available to students and to strengthen existing resources. I hope to continue my work in advocating for students and their rights and improving our campus!

My name is Melodie Slaughter and I seek to represent black and disabled students here at UIC. As a black differently-abled woman some of my experiences have culminated in serious mental health challenges. Allowing me to be a USG representative will allow better and stronger advocacy for black and disabled people here on campus, resulting in the progression of better community and equity here for everyone.

Hey, I’m Manasvi Thumu, a first year, current biology major, on the pre-med track. I’m excited to
stay as a representative of USG because I have some ideas of my own that I’d like to pursue. I
want to have a place where UIC students can easily know what the extraneous fees outside
tuition that they have to pay for; sustainability fee, student to student fee, etc. Another would be
standardizing course websites for example using blackboard for all course submission rather
than switching to back and forth from gradescope or eduflow for a few submissions. The last one
I thought of would be an orientation for first-year commuter students. I believe that I’ll be a good
representative for USG because I’ve attended UIC for a year now, I like the community here,
and I want to contribute to it. I’m hardworking, very good with deadlines, and I’ve done similar
project work in the past at my high school and in the past year to support students, so I
appreciate your nomination to continue working as a representative within USG.

It’s radically important for students to be heard & included in governing decisions, and this is why I want to join the UIC Board of Trustees.  I serve the student body as UIC Student Senator on Executive Committee and Vice President of Graduate Student Council.  Last year, I served as UIC Student Senator, SPH Executive Committee and GSC representative. I’ll bring this experience with humility and respect to the role.

Greetings, my name is Mohammed Haq and I am running with Empower UIC to be your next Student Trustee! My vision is to advocate for the issues that impact us all including campus safety, affordability, and transparency. My leadership at UIC includes being the current Treasurer for the Undergraduate Student Government and an ex-oficio member of the UIC Senate. With your support, I look forward to empowering all UIC students!”

Anthony Cruz

Danyah Thnaibat

My Nguyen

Asa Asad

Yaovi Koutoglo

LeeLoo Rose

Melodie Slaughter