Geetika Jerath

President Nominee | The Senate of College Councils

geetikajerath@utexas.edu

Vision for the Senate of College Councils:

Strengthening from within | Branding outward | Establishing innovative practices | Effecting change

Foster unity strengthen inter-council and internal-external relationships

Encourage collaboration target cross-collaboration and intersection points between internal Senate committees,
councils, agencies, and At-Large initiatives to expand resources and build greater success as a whole

Policy Initiatives:

Maintain thorough, well-researched legislation pieces that are relevant and produce measurable goals
Focus on expanding interdisciplinary opportunities, research, and inquiry-based curriculum
Increase dialogue on the growth and evolution of technology in higher education and begin the conversation on
integrating opportunities from the new Medical School with current graduate and undergraduate education
Analyze college budget priorities and involve College Tuition and Budget Advisory Committees
Assess the academic needs of and improve representation of nontraditional students, graduate students, transfer
students, and first year groups
Include councils in the legislation process before a piece is presented and throughout the policy implementation
process with a recurring report on the status of legislation
Provide councils with more ownership over legislation based on their needs, priorities, and individual missions

Strengthen involvement of councils, organizations, and campus individuals through the Invest in Texas campaign
Develop a strong presence at the Capitol to represent the voice of the students
Meet with key legislators and staff to discuss higher education, funding, and relevant issues
Encourage college-specific legislation and create forums, discussions, and surveys for students to provide input

Provide accessibility to Council Climate Survey results in addition to reports and publish online voting records
Host Senate Stakeholder Meeting State of the Senate open forum to discuss key points in order to improve the
organization as a whole with the Council Climate Survey results
ImproveUT develop an online resource and interactive platform for idea sharing/collaboration via Mindmixer for UT
Host Best Practice Workshops for councils, continue council visits, and provide a Senate 101 presentation resource

Student Advocacy:

Transparency and Inclusivity:

Branding and Communication:

Use creative avenues to educate students about Senate and councils via Senate-in-a-Minute videos and the UT app
Communicate with the student body as a whole through an innovative branding campaign encompassing online and
social media, college-wide emails, collaborative events with councils, and university programs

Qualifications:

Experience with councils and Senate:

o Executive Director Administers and analyzes the Council Climate Survey, directs Senate videos, focuses on
small Council and graduate representation, distributes resources and tools to Councils, developed
relationships and a strong understanding of Councils, Co-Chairs the Senate Representatives meetings
o Liberal Arts Council Member Departmental Representatives, Faculty Affairs, and Campus and Community
Focus Committee Member
o Liberal Arts CTBAC Secretary Focusing on tuition issues and student opinion for the College of Liberal Arts
o Undergraduate Research Committee Chair and At-Large Programs, legislation, and team building experience
University-wide appointments:
o Research Student Advisory Council Co-Chair Hosted Roundtables, provided resource and programming assistance
o Student Library Council | Senate Appointment
o Faculty Council Research Policy Committee Member Sole undergraduate member representing students
Legislative experience: Invest in Texas coalition member