Student Senate will talk about how recruitment week is going and how senate sidelines have been going during their meeting at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the Arcola/Tuscola Room of the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union.

Recruitment week is aimed at getting students to apply for senator positions.

Maralea Negron, the Student Senate Speaker, said recruitment happens each semester.

“In the fall, recruitment is by appointment, which means potential new senators have to fill out an application then they are interviewed by myself and another executive member,” Negron said.

In the spring they have elections.

“If a student was appointed by the speaker then they can only have an office for a semester, but if they ran or run in elections and get to keep their seat they keep their seat for a whole year,” Negron said.

People running in elections will not have to be appointed or re-run for another year until their term is up.

“If after elections we still have seats available in the spring we start with applications and the appointment process again,” Negron said. “The difference is that when elections happen anyone can run whether they have had a seat on senate or not.”

Negron said she would love to have a lot of the current senators that need to run again for their seats, but there are seats available.

“I am hoping that more than returning senators run in these elections,” Negron said.

Nearly 30 senate seats are open because most of the current senators were appointed in the last semester, meaning their term is up.

If all the returning senators run for another term, there would be five seats available.

“Due to the fact that all these terms are up it is up to the student body to decide who will return to senate if more than 28 people run in the elections,” Negron said. “The student body can pick up to 28 people to represent them on senate.”

A recruitment tactic that worked last year was reaching out to students in different locations on campus and in the classroom.

To run in the elections, the candidates need to pick up a packet and get 50 signatures from registered students; the packets are due at 4 p.m. Nov. 11.

The student government secretary checks all the E-numbers written down and places the name on the ballot, an email is then sent out to all students to vote on who they would like to have represent them.

“Student government as a whole would like students to get as involved as possible in the nomination process and voting process,” Negron said. “We have open seats available for those students interested in expanding their leadership skills.”

Jennifer Folami, a freshman communication studies major and student senator, said they were looking for people who wanted to be involved in student government.

“They want to be the voice for the students, because that’s the most important thing,” Folami said.

Folami said students had to take the initiative to be the voice for those who might not be able to.

“My voice gets heard because I say ‘hi, I’m Jennifer, I’m a student senator,’” Folami said. “It makes it more official when you’re asking for things to get done for the school.”

Cassie Buchman can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected]