Campus Council announced the candidates for the body's executive elections and approved significant changes to its constitution at its meeting last week.
Sophomore Anthony Vitarelli, currently treasurer of the organization, is running unopposed for president. Juniors Gerald Oliver and Mark Pike will vie for vice president; junior Anne Browning, sophomore Pasha Majdi and freshman Ralph Simon are contending for communications coordinator; and sophomore Dave Rausen and freshman Chris Kallmeyer are facing off for treasurer.
"I love Campus Council; it's the activity I've been most passionate about at Duke," Vitarelli said. "The structure is great, efficient and gets things done. We've really enhanced the undergraduate experience this year through great programming and residential policy."
Vitarelli, who also serves as a Duke Student Government legislator, said he hopes to build upon the success of this year and compile a review of the newly enacted housing policy - including examining the futures of linked housing, quadrangle squatting and options for students studying abroad.
"We're also going to look at annual review, the alcohol policy as it looks at residential life, and quad identity - specifically, how to empower the quad councils and really make them into effective programming bodies," he said. "It's a full plate, and other issues are going to come up next year that we can't foresee now."
The elections will be held at 7 p.m. March 27 in the Griffith Board Room in the Bryan Center. Only members of Campus Council may vote, but students are encouraged to attend, current president Andrew Nurkin, a senior, said.
The approved changes to the constitution are highlighted by the creation of three internal committees: the Programming Committee, the Finance Committee and the Policy and Facilities Committee.
Members will be divided into these committees at the start of the year and will make minor decisions on policy and programming. Subsequently, meetings for the larger body will become bi-weekly, freeing up time every other week for the committees to meet.
Vitarelli said the most significant empowerment increase from the restructuring will likely be the increased prominence of the finance committee.
"This creates advisement and supervisory structure for the quad councils," he explained. "A good portion of the residential programming fee goes to the quad councils, so it only makes sense that we give them as much help as we can."
The two other committees will continue to do much of the same work that the larger organization already tackles, but the reorganization will allow for members who are interested in particular areas of the organization to make decisions on those smaller realms.
The other major change is the creation of five new at-large positions in the organization, bringing the tally up to 19. These voting members will not represent individual quads, but rather the entire campus. Although the logistics of campus-wide campaigns could be difficult, the at-large members will be elected during the normal quad elections, Nurkin said.
Vitarelli explained that the new spots, which will augment the current non-voting ad hoc members, will allow students who are interested in serving on Campus Council but face heavy competition in their quads to still be involved.
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