Off-Campus housing the focus of Oelkers and Roccisano’s plans

Following last spring’s election, Lucas Oelkers and Isabella “Bella'' Roccisano are ASMSU’s new President and Vice President, respectively. Both veteran members of ASMSU, their combined desire to do more for the student body as well as considerable uplift from their peers inspired the pair to run for higher office, according to Lucas. The appeal to run together stemmed from their differing opinions which they felt would appeal to MSU’s wide range of students. The focus of their work this year will be to fill retail spaces currently vacant in the SUB, and to establish a physical space for the Off-Campus Life program amid rising housing prices and inflation in Bozeman.

ASMSU’s purpose is, as Roccisano said, to “empower, uplift and engage students.” The organization encourages students to talk to administrators about their needs, make sure that student fees are being used correctly and keep students engaged with events both on and off campus. “College isn’t just sitting in your dorm in between classes,” Roccisano said. Lucas’ role deals mostly with external matters. This includes engaging with clubs and organizations, intramural sports and administrators for the benefit of the student body. Roccisano’s Vice President role is focused on internal affairs, including managing ASMSU’s staff of over 100, helping each section manage budgets and making sure employees are fulfilling their roles. The VP also acts as a substitute to external matters when the President is unavailable.

The center point of Lucas and Bella’s campaign is to set up a physical space in the SUB for Off-Campus Life in the SUB. Although a website is already functioning to provide off-campus living resources, “The physical space and the actual programming that will come out of the Off Campus Life office will be implemented without raising any student fee” says Oelkers. Off-Campus Life remains the main focus of their work this year, “As housing prices have increased in Bozeman over the last few years, it has become harder for students to find affordable housing” continues Oelkers. 

The legislative session and the reallocation of student fees, two events which occur concurrently every six years, are also taking precedence this fiscal year. According to Oelkers, legislation concerning students must be dealt with by ASMSU’s elected officials for the overall benefit of the student body. Along with that, they must ensure that student fees are accurately distributed to the resources that students need the most, “Whether that’s a monetary shift towards more counseling or even the building of the new Student Wellness Center,” says Roccisano.

In the meantime, the first order of business for the year is finding restaurants and businesses to fill in the Union Market, which was unable to open at the start of the semester this year due to understaffing. Presently, it is unclear what businesses will be coming in, but ASMSU is striving to get food retailers moved into the SUB by the end of the semester.