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Guest Column:
ADVOCATING FOR OUR STUDENT ASSOCIATION Im ag e
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Alessandra Dante Sciarratta
General Psychology major/ASMHCC support staff As the name of your publication is the Advocate, I would like to take a moment to advocate on behalf of our student government. While I make no claims of impartial or nonpartisan opinions, I do aim to set a series of inaccuracies straight. More specifically, I write to respond to Kane Finders’s “ASMHCC’s Lack of Candidates” article, recently published in the April 28 issue of the Advocate. In his column, Finders critiques the student government, claiming a lack of access for
participation in elected roles, strenuous time commitment, and minimal compensation for said positions. Quoting unknown sources for complaints and creating hypotheticals to support his protest against ASMHCC, he constructs a clear argument against our student association. However, readers should note the superficial basis of this argument. Maintaining a student-run government certainly is not without its obstacles, but Finders’s points fall flat with misinformation. I seek not only to refute these accusations, but call into question the weight behind his criticisms. One must speak for the character of the ASMHCC first and foremost. It must be clear that the Associated Students of Mt. Hood Community College operate under the intent to best represent and serve the student body of MHCC. Any position within a government, even a student-run one, should be filled by those who are able to take on the responsibilities and commitments that come with a governing role. Should we not want our representatives to uphold these values? I consider Finders’s hyper-focus on the financial aspect of filling roles in the ASMHCC to be discrediting of the work-ethic held by our student government,
and even dismissive of the many positive changes they have created on campus. Additionally, despite Finders presenting otherwise, students here at MHCC do not need to hold a position in ASMHCC to participate within the student association. Simply looking at the description of the Associated Students page on MHCC’s website, an open invitation to join the ASMHCC’s discussions and contributions is extended to any student enrolled at Mt. Hood. Whether it be attending cabinet meetings in an accessible, virtual setting, or dropping by their office in the Student Union to speak directly to an elected member, the ASMHCC is wide open to any and all inquisitive students. We should consider the fact that filling these elected positions, where students hold the utmost responsibility for representing their campus and community, is not a simple matter. It certainly should not be granted to students solely drawn to the station by thoughts of offered money and compensation. Furthermore, readers should consider that in order to pay ASMHCC members, it would require students to pay additional fees in tuition or take away funds used in student aid and on campus activities, creating more financial
problems for our student body instead of resolving them. So rather than thinking of a role in ASMHCC as a job, where wages are owed in turn for hours worked, I encourage students to consider working in ASMHCC as volunteer work, a donation of time and effort to improve the school around them. Students in the ASMHCC dedicate their effort to organizing events and bettering life on campus, not because of a desire for ‘compensation,’ but because it genuinely benefits both fellow students and community members. A role in ASMHCC is not a paid position, it is not easy. And nor should it be. It’s a role of public service, requiring dedication and even sacrifice, in the name of making our campus a better place. In light of Finders’s criticisms, I ask fellow students to consider their contributions on campus, and what we can achieve by donating a bit of time and effort.
ADVOCATE SHINES IN OREGON COMPETITION Returning to publishing and posting full issues in 2022, The Advocate again scored a strong showing in the annual Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association (ONPA) competition for student-run newspapers. In results announced during the May 5 Collegiate Day seminar and awards ceremony online by the ONPA, Advocate staff won four first-place awards and 17 staff or individual awards overall – capped by a clean sweep in the Best Section category. The Advocate’s work was judged against that of peer two-year colleges across Oregon. Other first-place awards came for Best Design, Best Columnist, and Best Feature Photo. No award for General Excellence was given by
the ONPA, a departure from previous years. The following awards are for Advocate published during the 2022 calendar year:
Best Feature Story: 2nd Place, Kelley Chang 3rd Place, Kelley Chang Best Sports Story: 3rd Place, Aurora Myers
Best Photography: 2nd Place, Jennifer Wilhoite 3rd Place, Aquilina Larkins
Best Columnist: 1st Place, Nell Little 2nd Place, Shalynn Robinett (Rivas)
Best Editorial: 2nd Place
Best Sports Photo: 2nd Place, Aquilina Larkins
Best Headline Writing: 2nd Place
Best Feature Photo: 1st Place, Martell Meacham
Best Design: 1st Place
Best Website: 2nd Place
Best Section: 1st Place, Entertainment 2nd Place, Opinion 3rd Place, Features
Website: advocate-online.net Mt. Hood Community College Room 1369 26000 SE Stark Street Gresham OR 97030
Lindsay Leeman
Staff Writer | Photographer Hi, I’m Lindsay! I work with The Advocate as a writer and photographer. I was adopted when I was 5 and since I was a little kid, I have always loved anything artsy. This is my second term here at MHCC. I am 18 years old, and after I graduated from Clackamas High School,
I decided to focus the next few years getting my AAOT, and one day I hope to be an art therapist for foster and disabled kids. Aside from school, a few things I enjoy are hiking, playing my guitar, making greeting cards and visiting my friends and family.
indsey Leeman by L ed
E-mail: advocate@mhcc.edu
The Advocate encourages readers to share their opinion by letters to the editor and guest columns for publication. All submissions must include the writer’s name and contact information. Letters to the editor should not exceed 300 words and guest columns should not exceed 600. The decision to publish is at the discretion of the editorial board. The Advocate reserves the right to edit for style, punctuation, grammar and length. Opinions expressed in columns, letters to the editor or advertisements are the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of The Advocate or MHCC.
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