Don't Gamble with the Future: Nwatu and Hild
By Broadside Asst. News Editor Rebecca Fulton
Photo by Broadside Photographer Editor Courtney Erland
Instead of running off of a platform, Ijeoma Nwatu and Chris Hild have instead decided to embrace a vision for Mason. Their reason for running off of a vision instead of a platform is that they want a new direction for the university.
“Well, I’ve already [run on a platform] and I won, which is great, but I realize with the experience that I’ve had, and with the meetings that I’ve been in, there’s no real reason to run on a platform,” Nwatu said. “I don’t need a laundry list, I think Chris and I realize that that’s not the direction we want to go in and that’s not the direction that the university wants to go in.”
Nwatu and Hild believe that a vision is a better route to take when confronting the university because they believe it encompasses more of a positive outlook for the university, creating a list of “ideals and values” instead of “concerns and problems”.
“We will enrich the spirit at Mason by furthering our existing traditions and reinforcing the fact that Patriot Pride is here, now, forever,” their four-page vision reads.
Much of Nwatu and Hild’s vision has to do with Patriot Pride. One of their goals is to increase the feeling of pride on campus; which they believe will in turn correct some of the universities short comings.
“Everyone comes here for a reason, and at the end of the day, everyone’s here no matter what their ethnicity, race, religious background, sexual identity,” Hild said. “Everyone is a patriot. You’re a George Mason Patriot and that’s really what we want to get across to everybody. You can come here and take class, but you’re still a patriot and there’s something that connects you with all of the other students that are here, and if we can increase that identity and have people take pride in being a Mason patriot, it spreads to all of the other areas of concern–Mason life, increasing participation on the weekends, helping improving the services on the campuses.”
Nwatu and Hild also think that a rivalry against another university would beneficial to Mason.
“I feel like if there is a rivalry at Mason right now, the most natural one is JMU, while the one with VCU is building. I think it would be awesome if we had a rivalry with all of the CAA schools because, technically, we should,” Hild said.
“We support a healthy rivalry just because it’s something fun it’s something that you could build traditions off of,” Nwatu said.
Of their many goals listed in their vision, Nwatu and Hild strive to “enhance Patriot Pride at Mason and enhance the quality of each Patriot’s experience.”
Contact these two at: ijeoma.chris.mason2008@gmail.com.