Posts Tagged “DC Student Speak”

Monday night DC Students Speak kicked off the academic year by hosting Fiona Greig, a prospective DC Council candidate form Ward 2. Dr. Greig, a fan of smart growth and ethics reform who holds a Ph.D. in public policy from Harvard, would be running against Jack Evans for her seat, so she started off on a good foot.One of the major issues that faces the Council, according to Greig is the widespread corruption. She says that DC suffers from “part-time” government, as indicated by the numerous financial scandals current councilmembers have been involved in. With the district cash-strapped as ever, inappropriate uses of money are unacceptable.

Greig, herself car free, is a huge proponent of smart growth. She supports the proposed streetcar that would connect east and west DC, and she would like to expand the Metro system. (Greig would also like a Georgetown station, and that may be more possible than previously thought). When asked if she would support student discounts for public transportation, she was hesitant to agree because Metro’s bottom line and ability to serve distinct communities outweigh the interests of one population.

Greig took a more pragmatic than pandering stance when it came to the campus plan. To her, Georgetown University is a permanent interest and should be treated like one, especially since it is DC’s largest employer. Greig says that quelling the university’s growth is not good because the city could use the jobs.

Currently Greig is still in the exploratory phase of her committee campaign, and she is looking for on-campus volunteers to join her campaign. She doesn’t have a website up yet, so in the mean time, you can like her on Facebook.

Photo: Lucia He

Edit, 3:48pm. Fixed spelling

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Reimagine Georgetown

As one its many philanthropy initiatives, the Corp annually doles out Reimagine Georgetown grants to programs that “seek to improve our undergraduate experience at Georgetown in creative ways.”  In recent years, grants—which are co-sponsored by GUASFCU and The Hoya—have gone to now-well-known initiatives like Run for Rigby and 25 Days of Service.

According to Chairman of the Reimagine Georgetown Board J. Ryan Zambon (MSB ’10), the program received more than 20 grant applications this year.  Yesterday, the Board announced that it had narrowed the proposals down to four winners:

  • Georgetown Alternative Music Series: $5,000 will go towards Daniel Alexander’s (MSB ’11) idea of creating a series of on-campus concerts featuring student and local bands.
  • D.C. Students Speak: Michael Trummel (COL ’10) will be getting $3,000 to establish an annual conference between student leaders at all of the major D.C.-area universities to coordinate student response to issues like 61-D citations.
  • Saxa Service Feast: $2,000 will go to Joel Ziebell (COL ’10) to host a wing-eating contest for students and faculty.  The event will raise money that will be donated to the winning team’s charity of choice.
  • Diversability: Tiffany Yu (MSB ’10) is starting a club to promote “disability pride.” The group is in the process of getting SAC approval, and will be receiving $500 to get off the ground.

You can check out the full descriptions for the winning programs after the jump!

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