Undergraduate BE Board:Elections

Elections for the 2010 BE Undergraduate Board will be held during the end of semester study break on Tuesday, December 8th from 11am-12pm.

Candidate platforms are due on Friday, December 4th. Platforms should be submitted to Maryelise Cieslewicz at meciesle@mit.edu. After submission, platforms will be posted on the page.

Positions

The time commitment for all of the positions is about three hours a week. Responsibilities mainly include attending board meetings, sending emails to students and faculty, and attending events.

President: Faculty go-to person, runs the board and bi-weekly BE meetings

Vice President: A little of everything, an outside contact person for non-board members

Secretary: Sends out emails, takes minutes, reserves rooms for meetings

Treasurer: Orders food, budgets events, handles t-shirts, all other money situations

Platforms

President

Kevin Hu

Hi everyone. I'm Kevin Hu, and I'm running for president of the Biological Engineering Undergraduate Board (BEUB). After regularly attending meetings, I was extremely impressed by the ideas and genuine commitment that board members had towards improving Course 20 for future biological engineers. I want to play an active role in this group make a significant impact on the future of this field.

I would be a great addition to the BEUB because, over the past year, I have been personally involved in the activities that this group has spearheaded. In addition, I am one of the few members who have consistently participated in the majority of the meetings for the past semester, which has given me a great understanding of the organizational structure of the board and its ongoing projects. Because of this experience, I have a unique grasp on what BEUB can accomplish in the most effective and efficient manner, which would help me as the leader of this organization.

I believe I have the skills needed to represent your thoughts and input. My RAA experience has given me the skills needed to communicate suggestions that undergraduates have for professors or advisors. As president of the BEUB, I feel that I would be an excellent conduit for undergraduate opinions so that faculty members can change and improve Course 20. One of the projects that I want to lead is the creation of an underground guide (much like course 6), which gives more informative feedback on various BE core classes and electives. Another idea may be fun social event where upperclassmen mingle and share their experience and ideas with underclassmen (of course with food and refreshments provided).

I look forward to the opportunity of working with you next year.

Sivakami Sambasivam

Dear Course 20,

My name is Sivakami Sambasivam, and I am running to be your BEUB president. Last Spring, I attended a couple of the BEUB board meetings, and I was very excited to see the events and initiatives that were happening. The BEUB works to throw fun events and organize fun initiatives for the BE community and I would like to help lead it. The BEUB has done so much in the past year, and I see the potential it has to go so much further. As President, I will look to think outside of the box and bring in a new perspective that will allow the BEUB to reach its potential.

I have lots of experience with event planning and my goal this year is to make all the BE events, events that you want to come to and will show up to. As a member of the 2011 Class Council for 3 years, I have experience throwing events and listening to what the class wants. We organized a trip to Pour House, and this weekend, I am project managing the free ice skating event that will have chocolate fondue as well. I am also very detail oriented and will make the BEUB my top priority. I have experience working in teams as I co-chaired the SAAS Culture Show (a show with about 200 participants in Kresge for an audience of about 900 people), and as I was on crew freshman year. Further, I have worked closely with the Student Activities Office, and I know how to use a small budget to throw great events.

I also spoke to Professor Manalis, one of the professors who works closely with the club, and I am confident that I will be able to work closely with him as president to ensure that we can make BE the major you want it to be. I am very excited to develop a community within BE, and I am hoping to hear your input on how we can do this. How can we make the BE lounge a place where you want to pset with your friends or a place where you will frequently stop by? What BE gear do you want? What panels of BE alumnae do you want to hear from? Do you want a BE alum/student mentor program? Do you want more faculty/student lunches? I am also very excited about the idea of a BE FPOP that was presented at one of the BEUB meetings I attended, and I want your help to help us make this idea a reality. I am excited to hear from you, and I will work very hard with my executive board this year to make sure that your voices are heard and that events and initiatives that you will enjoy are undertaken.

Thank you very much, Sivakami

Vice President

Ginger Yang

Coming into MIT, I didn't really have any interest in bioengineering or knew what it exactly was. However, after attending events hosted by the BE Undergraduate Board, I have decided to become a bioengineering major. I would love to become part of the BE board in order to facilitate discussion between faculty and students because I feel many students are hesitant to approach professors. Also, as bioengineering is a relatively new major at MIT, there are still definitely room for change and feedback from the students and I would like to be a part of this. Finally, having organized many different types of events through other leadership roles (ATS, MUBA, MITCE, RAA, and REX chair), I feel that I have the necessary experience to carry out the job. I am very excited and enthusiastic about becoming a course 20 major and hope that as either Vice President or Secretary of the BE Board, I will be able to share this enthusiasm with other course 20s.

Anne Ye

Hello, Course 20, I’m Anne Ye, and I’m running for the BE Undergraduate Board. I attended several events organized by BEUB last year that were very helpful in giving me an opportunity to get answers from professors and upperclassmen to my questions about Course 20 – its classes and faculty, innovative research in the field, and potential career paths. This year, I would like to become part of the BE Board and get involved in organizing these types of events and more to help prospective and current Course 20 students.

As a member of the BEUB, I will work to encourage more interaction and discussion between students and faculty, whether it be through more student/faculty lunches, panels of faculty members to offer advice and talk about their career paths and research interests, or other ideas for informative, engaging events that you are interested in. Other new projects that I hope to launch are industry career development events, such as industry tours, and an event similar to a Grad School Admissions panel, but geared towards applying for internships/jobs at companies in biotech, pharmaceuticals, etc. I will work to communicate students’ suggestions and feedback to faculty members, so that Course 20 undergrads can play an integral role in developing a curriculum and department that best meet their needs and interests.

I believe I can make a significant contribution to the BEUB and to Course 20 because I am good at being proactive in communicating with professors and industry representatives. I am also highly organized and good at managing time efficiently. Finally, I am always really interested to hear the ideas and input of other students, and combined with my own experience on deciding my major, picking classes, etc., I believe I have a good feel for common questions and suggestions. I am very excited to join Course 20, and I hope I can contribute to improving the major even more.

Sivakami Sambasivam

Dear Course 20,

My name is Sivakami Sambasivam, and I am running for your BEUB. If I cannot be your president, I would still like to contribute to the Board as your VP! Last Spring, I attended a couple of the BEUB board meetings, and I was very excited to see the events and initiatives that they were happening. The BEUB works to throw fun events and organize fun initiatives for the BE community and I would like to be a part of it. The BEUB has done so much in the past year, and I see the potential it has to go so much further. As President, I will look to think outside of the box and bring in a new perspective that will allow the BEUB to reach its potential.

I have lots of experience with event planning and my goal this year is to make all the BE events, events that you want to come to and will show up to. As a member of the 2011 Class Council for 3 years, I have experience throwing events and listening to what the class wants. We organized a trip to Pour House, and this weekend, I am project managing the free ice skating event that will have chocolate fondue as well. I am also very detail oriented and will make the BEUB my top priority. I have experience working in teams as I co-chaired the SAAS Culture Show (a show with about 200 participants in Kresge for an audience of about 900 people), and as I was on crew freshman year. Further, I have worked closely with the Student Activities Office, and I know how to use a small budget to throw great events.

I also spoke to Professor Manalis, one of the professors who works closely with the club, and I am confident that I will be able to work closely with him as president to ensure that we can make BE the major we want it to be. I am very excited to develop a community within BE, and I am hoping to hear your input on how we can do this. How can we make the BE lounge a place where you want to pset with your friends or a place where you will frequently stop by? What BE gear do you want? What panels of BE alumnae do you want to hear from? Do you want a BE alum/student mentor program? Do you want more faculty/student lunches? I am also very excited about the idea of a BE FPOP that was presented at one of the BEUB meetings I attended, and I want your help to help us make this idea a reality. I am excited to hear from you, and I will work very hard with my executive board this year to make sure that your voices are heard and that events and initiatives that you will enjoy are undertaken.

Thank you very much, Sivakami

Secretary

Ginger Yang

Coming into MIT, I didn't really have any interest in bioengineering or knew what it exactly was. However, after attending events hosted by the BE Undergraduate Board, I have decided to become a bioengineering major. I would love to become part of the BE board in order to facilitate discussion between faculty and students because I feel many students are hesitant to approach professors. Also, as bioengineering is a relatively new major at MIT, there are still definitely room for change and feedback from the students and I would like to be a part of this. Finally, having organized many different types of events through other leadership roles (ATS, MUBA, MITCE, RAA, and REX chair), I feel that I have the necessary experience to carry out the job. I am very excited and enthusiastic about becoming a course 20 major and hope that as either Vice President or Secretary of the BE Board, I will be able to share this enthusiasm with other course 20s.

Anne Ye

Hello, Course 20, I’m Anne Ye, and I’m running for the BE Undergraduate Board. I attended several events organized by BEUB last year that were very helpful in giving me an opportunity to get answers from professors and upperclassmen to my questions about Course 20 – its classes and faculty, innovative research in the field, and potential career paths. This year, I would like to become part of the BE Board and get involved in organizing these types of events and more to help prospective and current Course 20 students.

As a member of the BEUB, I will work to encourage more interaction and discussion between students and faculty, whether it be through more student/faculty lunches, panels of faculty members to offer advice and talk about their career paths and research interests, or other ideas for informative, engaging events that you are interested in. Other new projects that I hope to launch are industry career development events, such as industry tours, and an event similar to a Grad School Admissions panel, but geared towards applying for internships/jobs at companies in biotech, pharmaceuticals, etc. I will work to communicate students’ suggestions and feedback to faculty members, so that Course 20 undergrads can play an integral role in developing a curriculum and department that best meet their needs and interests.

I believe I can make a significant contribution to the BEUB and to Course 20 because I am good at being proactive in communicating with professors and industry representatives. I am also highly organized and good at managing time efficiently. Finally, I am always really interested to hear the ideas and input of other students, and combined with my own experience on deciding my major, picking classes, etc., I believe I have a good feel for common questions and suggestions. I am very excited to join Course 20, and I hope I can contribute to improving the major even more.

Treasurer

Ragheb El Khaja

Hey my name is Ragheb, I am a Sophomore in Course 20 and I am running for treasurer of the Biological Engineering Undergraduate Board. I would like to join the team because I believe it truly enhances the experience of all BE majors. I really enjoyed the events held by the board (both social and academic) and I would like to contribute to its success. I would like to help the board reach out to more students, help freshmen choose their majors and enhance the sense of community in BE in general. I am currently the Treasurer for my floor in Burton-Conner. I hope to be able to work with the board to make Course 20 even more awesome!