The Associated Students of California Lutheran University Senate has gained four new freshmen members to its board.

The first addition is freshman Senator Brandy Alonzo-Mayland. Alonzo-Mayland is an English major with an economics minor and someday hopes to be a constitutional lawyer. One of the reasons Alonzo-Mayland joined the senate was because of her past with student government.

“I did [Associated Student Body] in high school. I was treasurer for a couple years,” Alonzo-Mayland said. “I just really like the community. I like being involved in the school and making it better for everyone.”

One of Alonzo-Mayland’s goals for her time as a representative is to make students aware of their constitutional rights and how they can be violated on the Cal Lutheran campus. With her senate project, something each senator takes on during the year, she plans to hold a seminar or a Resident Assistant program to talk with students about their rights.

It is her belief that Cal Lutheran students should be able to be aware of possible problems on campus if they happen to arise.

“I think it feels good to know someone is always around on campus,” Alonzo-Mayland said. “Especially for freshman because it’s our first year and we are all really scared. I would just hope to help people feel safe and protected.”

The next freshman senator is Nick Steinwender. A native of Simi Valley, he is a business administration major with a minor in political science. He wanted to join the senate because of his passion for politics. He also wanted a way to get more involved at Cal Lutheran. He felt joining senate was the best way to achieve this.

“While I was in high school I was an officer in several of the school clubs as well as serving on five advisory boards to the Simi Valley city,” Steinwender said in an email interview. “This past summer I also interned for Congressman Steve Knight.”

Steinwender said he believes having a position of representation will help him reach out to the Cal Lutheran student community. Being a good listener and understanding issues that students might have is a goal of his.

“I hope that my involvement with the senate will impact the CLU students positively and that I could bring a different viewpoint and experience from the other positions that I’ve held,” Steinwender said.

The third new senator is Alexis Ghattas. She is a freshman and her experience with the Reserve’s Officers Training Corps was a contributing factor for her application to the senate.

“I actually have done ROTC for four years. I did a bit of student government in high school,” Ghattas said. “I was CSF president and Environmental club president, so I have a really strong feel for planning things and making sure everything goes as planned.”

Being new on campus, Ghattas plans on doing a survey through blackboard in order to get a feel for the issues students are dealing with everyday. Her main goal would be to get students to coexist with each other.

The final senator is Destinee Ballesteros. She is a first year political science major with a minor in public affairs. Her aspirations are either becoming a judge, attorney or work for the democratic candidate committee.

“I believe that it will just enhance the community. CLU is great already, but I feel like I could make us a closer community,” Ballesteros said. “I like to go around and talk to people, just like how I got elected. Just explain to people my goals and just help people be informed. Try to encourage people to come to our meetings and use their voice.”

ASCLU Senate Director, Daniel Lacey said he has high hopes for their futures.

“It was a race amongst nine candidates, and I truly believe the four senators are going to be bringing a lot to the table,” Lacey said in an email. “Just from our fall retreat, they weren’t quiet, instead they were engaged, wanted to learn and asked questions to find out how we can reach the normal Cal Lutheran student here on campus and understand what is the true student need here.”

These four senators have big ideas and are ready to help the Cal Lutheran student community any way they can.

“This year we have a group of senators from all different backgrounds and the first year senators are no exception,” Lacey said. “They all are very different, but that gives me hope because Cal Lutheran is very diverse and with a diverse board we truly understand what the student need is whether you are a freshmen or a commuter student.”

Courtney Sooy
Staff Writer
Published September 30th, 2015