Iowa State Student Government election polls open Monday. There is one seat on the ballot represented by the College of Design. Joshua Stevens (he/him), a second-year student in community and regional planning, is one of two candidates running to serve as a senator for the college.

Why do you feel qualified to serve in Student Government?

I feel I’m qualified because I’ve already been in Student Government and I think I’m very well-connected with design students. Throughout the time I’ve been their senator, I’ve talked to students to see what they want, and at meetings, I gave insight into what students want and I’ve done my best to represent them.

How do you plan to serve your constituents?

My plan would be to send out a Google form for students to give their input on what they want to be different in the College of Design. I also plan to talk to professors to see what they want to be done differently to benefit more students. This year was a little tough because of COVID. We couldn’t get as much done as you would guess. I have a feeling that things are looking better, so next year, we will get more done.

What are some of the biggest issues you feel need to be addressed in the next year?

Freedom of speech issues are a huge thing. There are a lot of things on campus that are questionable when it comes to First Amendment rights. Another issue is spending. We spend money on things we don’t need to spend money on. I want our Student Government to be smarter and more transparent about their spending. For the College of Design, people I’ve talked to want the GIS program to get more funding. They also want to start a community and regional planning club, which we are getting started on and I think that’s great. I think Student Government should be able to give some funding for that, and it will be beneficial to the community and regional planning students. Those are the big issues I would focus on in the College of Design.

Outside of those issues, what are the goals you hope to accomplish?

One of the things I have planned is we are in the works of getting a resolution approved for a plot of land west of the College of Design that we’re planning on making into prairie land that you would see in more remote parts of Iowa. Another thing I had planned is to get more funding for stuff like the GIS department.

Why do you think it is crucial the College of Design has an equal role in government?

I would say that it’s important that we have a more equal role because all the colleges should be represented equally because we’re all students here at the end of the day, and everyone should have their best experience in school. A lot of their experience could come from what we do in Student Government. The College of Design is really important to Iowa State.