Broadside News

Hillary Huber, Broadside Correspondent

George Mason University was the number one school to watch last year, and with a new Public Relations Committee, Student Government is proving why Mason deserves that title.

The committee will be responsible for any and all advertising, and according to the Student Government website is dedicated to “giv[ing] students professional experience while developing Student Government’s visibility within the Mason Community.”

Peter Danjczek, Student Government’s Chief of Staff and a senior government and international politics major, wants to make sure students are more informed.

“We really want to benefit students. As a student government, we have built the relationships with all of the administrators and staff on campus,” said Danjczek.

“If a student needs to know about something, we have other students that are specifically trained to know about a certain topic, and if for some reason that student doesn’t know the answer, we have all of the resources to quickly and easily get one for that student,” said Danjczek.

“Well, I never know when anything is happening so more advertising would help more people know about the events and lead to more people going to the events,” said freshman Jennifer Stenzel, a community health major.

The idea for this committee sprouted when Student Government was working on the Vote Van campaign, where they shuttled students to and from a voting precinct. Instead of being able to focus their energy on the details of the actual event, the overwhelming amount of PR work consumed much of their time.

Danjczek said he and other student government members realized how beneficial a committee dedicated strictly to PR could be.

“[The public relations committee] sounds like it will give other students the opportunity to be involved with the student government without holding a position and for people like me to get experience working in PR,” said Allie Hunter, a freshman communications major.

According to Danjczek, the goal is for students to gain work experience in fields that they are interested in, including areas such as graphic design, press releases, and campaign development.

Danjczek said he wants it to be a source that students can rely on to find out what is going on around campus, instead of reading about events after they happen.

“I think it would definitely benefit with helping find events, because now, finding anything that is happening on campus is chaotic,” said freshman Amanda Defee, an integrative studies major.

Student Government is currently working on a list-serve that would do just that.

Modeled after the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s student government website, it would organize campus events according to interest in one place.

As of right now, a list-serve will be first on their agenda during website development.

Danjczek said other events the committee will be working on include Gold Rush, a school-spirit event that intensifies patriot pride, and other Student Government sponsored events held at Rathskeller’s.

The Student Government, said Danjczek, is predominantly made of seniors this year, and noted that they will not be around next year to witness the fruits of their labor.

“We’ve cut out what we want personally, to focus on what the students want. It takes the personal aspect out of it. This will really benefit the students, and we want them to take advantage of that,” said Danjczek.
He said the seniors’ legacy is that they want to further develop the executive system of student government on campus, making it professional and business-like.

Most importantly, he wants the Student Government to be a place where students can find answers about campus-related information.

Student Government is now taking applications, which can be found on its website, www.sg.gmu.edu.
All Mason students are encouraged to apply for a position within the new committee.

According to Danjczek, Student Government is looking for passionate, experienced students who are capable of dedicating time to the committee.