ELECTIONS 2006 The SCCOCC Candidates

Author: Dan Stevens

Ryan Tauriainen, Class of 2008

Ryan Tauriainen is running for Student Co-Chair of Community Council (SCCOCC) because he feels he is the "best person to present the voice of this school." Along with a number of other specific goals, Ryan wants to open the dialogue between the student body and the administration and improve Middlebury by working directly with the administration.

Tauriainen is a rising junior from Grants Pass, Ore., and he is involved with the Middlebury co-ed competitive cheerleading team and Feminist Action at Middlebury. Through these activities Ryan has learned about eating disorders at Middlebury and has tried to improve the current situation. Along with this focus, Ryan believes the SCCOCC is a great position to facilitate discussions of "alcohol, racism and smoking on campus."

Tauriainen is a Classics major with a focus in Latin and is looking to improve the community at Middlebury. His statement of intent outlines what he feels are the most pressing topics facing the Middlebury community. "I believe the [College] rules concerning issues such as alcohol, smoking, self-defense and racism do not directly follow the laws of this country and are vague and unfair," Tauriainen wrote.

Tauriainen plans to push hard for the SCCOCC position in the next few days by posting banners and even mounting a door-to-door campaign to raise student awareness. His simple goal is to improve the College: "I can only promise that I would treat this office with the dutifulness and respect that it deserves and serve the students of this College to the best of my ability."



Mike Tierney, Class of 2009.5

Michael Tierney is running for SCCOCC because he knows "the sense of community that is present here in the College." Tierney would especially like to focus on "[bringing] the College together."

Tierney is a first-year Feb from Boston. Since his arrival just a few months ago, he has been involved with the musical "Into the Woods" and has signed up to help out with next year's first-year orientation, among other activities. Tierney believes these activities have given him an acute sense of the Middlebury community.

More than any single issue, Tierney would like to build the community at Middlebury College. Specifically, Tierney believes in expanding avenues for social life. "I am interested in trying to bolster support for both the commons and social houses as well as trying to integrate the commons more through co-sponsored events," he said.

Tierney is focused on the needs of all students. "If elected I'd be there to fight for the initiatives students are really passionate about, because that ties us together. I promise to bring my vision of 'community' to Community Council. I promise to communicate well with the faculty co-chair, the SGA Senate and the SGA president. I promise to bring dedication to amplify the student voice, and bring about ways to enhance life at Middlebury."

Tierney will work hard in the next few days to secure votes by littering the campus with campaign paraphernalia as well as finding out the specific needs of students by interacting with the community. "If I'm going to run as a representative for the student body, and being a student myself, I need to know well the concerns of those I would represent."



Annie Williams, Class of 2007

Annie Williams is running for SCCOCC because she "believes that Community Council takes on the comprehensive approach required of effective college governance." Rather than any specific proposal, Williams sees the position as a place to expand the student body's role in the College's affairs.

Williams comes to Middlebury from Bedford, N.Y., and is a junior International Studies major. She has been involved with the SGA as a senator representing Atwater Commons. Through her time as an SGA senator, Williams became aware of the many issues facing the College and sought different solutions through the SGA.

Williams's vision for the SCCOCC is one that indoctrinates the opinions of all students. "My primary objective [as SCCOCC] would be to effectively represent the student body - a goal that I plan to achieve through an open channel of communication." Williams plans to assemble e-mail lists and to hold meetings to discuss the issues that Community Council will be discussing.

Although Williams sees the folly in promising specific rewards to the voting students, she does see a couple of prospective hopes. She looks to open dialogue concerning the expansion of wireless capabilities across the campus and continue the discussion about the Safe-Rides program.

Williams also sees her role as SCCOCC as a position to rectify Middlebury apathy. Williams cites a cycle that has caused "the deterioration of the relationship between the student body and the administration." She hopes to rectify that cycle. "I pledge to dedicate my efforts toward the realization of student's desires via Community Council resolutions."