Editor’s Note: “10 Questions” is part of a weekly series in which a prominent person in the Iowa State and Ames communities is interviewed. To suggest someone for an interview, submit an e-mail request to [email protected]. This week’s interview is with Neelika Jayawardane, president of the Student Union Board.

What do you do as president of the Student Union Board?

Everyone who is a part of SUB kind of designs that position according to what their interests are, so I’m involved in interviewing every spring.

SUB’s strength is that we have the connection to other parts of campus organizations and various activities. I would say the biggest part of being an SUB president is your ability to be very in tune with what is going on with ISU as a whole.

What have you learned from being in all different kinds of campus activities?

I think it’s helped me be a well-rounded person and helped me become an adult who’s a functioning member of the community at large.

How do you stay organized as a person who is so involved with other activities and organizations?

I think it takes a certain personality, and I’m not sure if I had that personality before. It develops, which is great because people should not limit themselves and say, “I can’t do this because I’m not an organized person.”

What have been your goals this year for SUB?

SUB has always been a place where students of many different backgrounds come together, and that is our strength, that we are a representation of the entire student population.

The Multi-Cultural Task Force has really helped advertise what we do to other groups. That has been a great way to collaborate with other organizations and bring their people into ours.

What do you think has been really been important to the success of SUB?

When you are able to make a connection, you are able to reach a larger group. You can’t really get people involved if you don’t have trust. And the only way you can have trust is by having real friendships with people.

What activities are you planning right now?

Well, every semester we bring in these great bands to The M-Shop, and we try really hard to find out what’s popular right now, as well as [what is] interesting to specific groups. Because student fees pay for our programming, we are able to do that at a low cost.

The other thing we have is a program called Cafe Au Lait that is probably done once a month or so. It’s basically a variety show … people sing, read poetry, do performances or come and tell stories.

How many students make up SUB and how can you get appointed as a director?

We have 10 directors and two executive members, president and vice president. Every spring we advertise … for the positions that are open, and then we do an interview process. Each of the current directors also participates in the interviewing process so they know exactly what to look for in a director.

But we also need to be careful that we don’t just find a person that is the direct mirror of the person who came before because every year, every director does something different. That’s great, and we want that.

What is your budget, and how do you create activities to fit that budget?

Every director is in charge of their own budget. We work heavily with our advisers and our program secretary, and I think we are as strong as our advisers. You look at your budget for the year and work with the adviser about what you can do during the year. And it may work out that you have money left over. We do as much as we can afford.

Where do you get most of the ideas for programs, movies or other events?

As far as the films go, there is a committee, as well as contemporary entertainment [committee] that knows what’s going on in that area. They vote on what they’d like to see. And in the end, it’s the director’s choice on what to bring here.

A lot of organizations come in and solicit — film companies send magazines to us; bands send information through their agents. We also coordinate events through the Lectures Program. A lot of our ideas come from those connections.

What do you like to do in your spare time?

I used to bake for a coffee shop. So I cook, but not as much as I bake. I make cakes because I was a pastry chef. I have potlucks at my house, and that has been a great way to meet people.