Sitting in a taxicab in Mozambique early last semester, Trinity junior Jordan Bazinsky found himself facing machine-gun toting policemen screaming at him in a foreign language and confiscating his passport.
The Duke Student Government presidential race was, needless to say, the furthest thing from his mind.
Thinking quickly, Bazinsky reached over and high-fived one of the policemen, opening up lines of communication which allowed the group of American students to pay the expected bribe and retrieve their passports.
Months later, after surviving this and several other adventures during his semester in Africa, Bazinsky is now ready to face a new challenge.
"Stepping away from Duke and then coming back highlights a lot of issues," he said. "Duke's a great place. But, just like any other, it has its share of problems. I think I could do a good job helping to address those issues."
Bazinsky is confident that being abroad first semester would not hurt his performance as DSG president.
"I gained a lot more than I could have lost while I was in Africa," he said. "I was very aware of the issues when I left this summer. The details might have changed, but the issues are still the same."
To review the events and issues of last semester, Bazinsky said he read back issues of The Chronicle and met with student leaders.
Other students who have worked with Bazinsky doubt that his absence will pose a problem. "Just because you're not active in DSG does not mean that you are not upholding the ideals of DSG," said Trinity junior Ricardo Pitts-Wiley, who has worked closely with Bazinsky on volunteer initiatives.
If anything, Pitts-Wiley said Bazinsky suffers from a desire to please too many people at once, and that Bazinsky's multiple commitments created significant time pressures last year.
Bazinsky thinks that his trip to Africa has helped him to focus on what's really important. "It gave me a good global perspective and helped focus my energy," he said. "It greatly altered my personal motivations for what I get involved in."
Specifically, Bazinsky sees financial aid as his top priority. His ideas include continuing current DSG President and Trinity senior Lisa Zeidner's progress and adding some concrete plans of his own.
"I would definitely continue [the] financial aid task force that [Zeidner] set up," he said. "The only problem is that it will [take] years of controlled effort to see progress from the task force. I would also like to see more immediate goals, like a fund-raising effort that will culminate in a student scholarship."
Although hardly a long-term or far-reaching initiative, he envisions DSG working to raise $120,000 to put a student through four years at Duke.
Bazinsky sees other priorities for next year as the parking situation and race relations-an issue that gained more importance for him during his time in Africa.
"You go to South Africa and they have a lot of social segregation-type issues that are in some ways quite similar to Duke," he said. "Except in South Africa, they talk about it and it's very upfront. Here, I realized how little we deal with it in our everyday lives."
Bazinsky said he has been thinking about Duke issues since his freshman year, when he jumped headfirst into East Campus Council. He served as council president, managing a large budget and serving as unofficial president of the class.
Assistant Dean of Student Development Kimberly Dailey, Bazinsky's adviser on ECC, describes him as team-oriented, down-to-earth and refreshing. "He doesn't remind me of all student leaders," she said. "He's unique in a good way."
At the end of his freshman year, Bazinsky took a large step. Although he had no DSG involvement, he decided to run for vice president for student affairs. Ultimately, he was soundly defeated.
"I remember thinking there were specific issues I wanted to get involved with, like the keg policy, financial aid car policy and residential life," he said, of his decision to run.
"I ended up getting whupped, but what are you going to do? I sucked up my pride and still joined DSG. I still wanted to get involved," he added.
He was also defeated for sophomore class president, but that margin was much narrower.
During his sophomore year on DSG, Bazinsky served on the academic affairs committee, spearheading the reinstitution of preceptorials.
Bazinsky also helped to found Durham Directions, a volunteer organization which funds field trips for Durham elementary schools.
"I hold just the highest respect for him," said Trinity junior Sarah Kaffenberger, another organizer of Durham Directions.
"He's always thinking way ahead of things. He's always been kind of an innovator. He gets people motivated to do things on their own," she said.
Dave Ingram contributed to this story.
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