Editor’s Note: This is the third in a weekly series about the people being Iowa State’s Government of the Study Body.

Communication is the key to future success for Mike Banasiak, Government of the Student Body director for governmental relations.

The main requirement of his position is to facilitate relations between GSB and governmental bodies in Iowa, said Banasiak, junior in management information systems. Governmental bodies in Iowa include student governments at other Iowa schools, the City Council, the Board of Regents and the state Legislature.

Banasiak wants to ensure students have a voice in the state government. “[I try to] make sure the student voice doesn’t fall on deaf ears,” Banasiak said.

He is accomplishing his goal by setting up an outreach program to legislators. Banasiak is drafting letters which will address the priorities of the GSB which are relevant to the representatives.

Education is a major issue Banasiak said he is addressing.

“Not only are students seeing a tuition increase, but the quality [of their education] is declining,” he said.

Banasiak said he believes GSB needs to start at the top of the system because legislators are the ones who vote. He hopes to sit down and explain the financial burden students face when seeking a college education in order to find compromises that will work for both sides, he said.

Banasiak is also establishing a network of contacts in the city government. The city issues are important to GSB because the issues affect students who live in Ames.

Banasiak is working as a liaison between GSB and the Ames City Council, said Mayor Ted Tedesco.

Through their conversations, Tedesco said he has realized the importance of student opinion and is working to seat a non-voting representative on the City Council.

“[The university] is a major part of the Ames population,” he said. “It’s good to have [the students’] input.”