In the Sept. 2, 2010 edition of The North Wind, we reported that ASNMU president Lucia Lopez was registered for graduation at the end of the Fall semester. While Lopez initially denied that registering for graduation meant she would not be leaving in the Winter 2011 semester, she has graduated and officially resigned and former Vice President Courtney Russell will take her place.
Though we wish Lopez had been forthright about her plans for the future, we applaud Russell’s initiative in stepping up to fill her shoes. Being the president of ASNMU is not an easy position, especially when it is unpaid.
Russell kept the best interests of the students in mind and followed through with what she had said in the Sept. 2 article, that she would take over the presidency should Lopez resign. With a campaign characterized by keeping political motivations transparent, something that students specifically voted for, Russell is already off to a great start by continuing to work on the projects she started at the beginning of the academic year and upholding her commitment to students.
One important thing that we hope Russell will do as president is take an active role in students’ lives and be more present than usual; this was something that Lopez and Russell ran on last year and did not deliver. While this remains to be seen, Russell has this goal at the top of her agenda, and we commend her.
Lopez cited lack of pay as a reason for leaving, and Russell has found a way around this by also taking on the position of ASNMU office secretary, a paid position.
This is a smart move by Russell because it ensures that she will be in the office more often, and students will have more opportunities to discuss whatever issues they may have with her. It’s this kind of foresight and problem solving that proves that Russell has made NMU students her first priority.
After the broken promises of the Lopez administration, it’s time for someone to take ASNMU and make it live up to its full potential. With Russell at the helm, that time may have finally come.
