Ballots closed April 6 for this year’s Associated Students of Occidental College (ASOC) elections. According to elections chair Sarah Titcombe (junior), the student body voted for candidates in a variety of positions for the 2024–2025 school year. ASOC announced Monday, April 8 that Cecilia Grané (sophomore) won the presidential race with 209 votes.
ASOC, Occidental’s student government, consists of four departments: the Senate, the Diversity and Equity Board, the Sustainability Fund and the Honor Board. Two of these sections, the Senate and the Honor board, consist of elected officials, as opposed to appointed ones. According to Titcombe, in the recent election, students voted for a president, vice president of finance, director of internal affairs (senate chair), director of academic affairs and class senators for the sophomore, junior and senior classes.
According to Titcombe, ASOC is important because members serve as liaisons between the Occidental student body and administration. Titcombe said that this year’s elections are particularly pressing because of changes on campus, such as a new college president, Tom Stritikus, and the emerging Rising Occidental Student Employees (ROSE) union.
“There’s lots of change that’s coming on campus that I think is really healthy, and I think we need people to engage with student government, recognizing that hopefully they will be able to support and further those initiatives that we want to see on campus,” Titcombe said.
Titcombe said the president is one of the most necessary roles for ASOC.
“They are the figurehead of the student government as we facilitate conversations between students and administration,” Titcombe said.
Important qualities for presidential candidates are the ability to take initiative, facilitate uncomfortable conversations and be honest and realistic about future goals, according to Titcombe.
Grané said her time in ASOC has allowed her to get to know both the Occidental community and the system itself quite well.
“I’ve really understood how ASOC operates, and now want to use my platform and this position next year to create the changes I know students want to see,” Grané said. “My time in ASOC has definitely been invaluable to my growth as a leader.”
According to Grané, serving your community requires understanding the needs of your community.
“I’m definitely committed to listening,” Grané said. “I recognize that the needs of our community are ever changing.”
Grané said that right now she has three concrete goals to accomplish in office.
“My first initiative as president is to create a cabinet under the executive committee that is aimed at uplifting cross campus workers,” Grané said. “Secondly, I want to improve the mental health resources that we have on campus by implementing a transportation service that would allow students to access the help they need. Lastly, I want to expand access to athletic facilities by increasing the hours of operation in our gym and pool.”
Grané said that the approach to making progress is just as important as what is accomplished.
“Something that I really center in all of my work is leading with compassion, and being a face that students know they can trust and count on and come talk to,” said Grané.
Grané won against Claire Kosek (sophomore) who is currently serving as director of finance in the Senate, and previously served as both a juror and secretary on the Honor Board. Kosek said that during her time with the ASOC she has had a key role in producing the new Student Bill of Rights.
“We have a lot of documents on campus that tell us what we can’t do as students,” Kosek said. “[The Student Bill of Rights] is working to fix the culture of care on campus, make us feel like a student body again … making the students feel uplifted and respected, and like they have rights.”
According to Kosek, one reason she felt particularly qualified to serve as student body president is the relationship she has built with incoming college president Tom Stritikus.
“I had this great opportunity to serve on the presidential search committee, and so I helped pick Tom Stritikus, and I just realized that I had such an opportunity to create connections with administration, and I thought, ‘Wow, I could exploit these for the betterment of the students,’” Kosek said.
Kosek said that she wanted to use her connections to be a voice for students who don’t feel comfortable approaching the administration directly.
“Especially because there’s the transition with our new president coming in, Tom Strikitus, there is a new precedent that we can set, and we need to jump in with both feet and just be willing to put in the hard work,” Kosek said.
Grané said that she seriously enjoys the work she does, and that she believes it is her responsibility as a member of ASOC to remain dedicated and continue to make the most of her roles, representing students to the best of her abilities.
“There are probably questions you have that I don’t have the answers to, but as your student representative I am committed to finding those answers for you,” Grané said. “Where there’s a will, there’s a way.”
Contact Eli Heringman at heringman@oxy.edu
