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news:
Vivian gets ready
to write checks he can cash
By Christine Shin
Summer Forty-Niner
Mr. Vice President
sits in his oblong office, ready to take on the new academic
year.
In regard to his
personal motto, "don't let your mouth write checks your
ass can't cash," Associated Students Inc. Vice President
Danny Vivian said he has written a few checks during his campaign.
"And I'm looking
forward to cashing them," Vivian said. "I'm not
about the bark, I'm all about the bite."
In contrast with
his barely furnished office with an undetermined motif, the
Tae Kwon Do black belt said he feels prepared and comfortable
with his extensive experience.
"I feel comfortable
with what I know," Vivian said. "But I know that
there's always room for improvement and I also know that you're
never done learning. The experience itself is the learning
experience.
"There's always
a fear of inability to do the job," he added. "It's
up to me to utilize the time in the summer to know the rules.
It's important to be educated on policies, constituents and
the university."
Having started
his extracurricular activities in high school, Vivian is no
novice. The aquarian claims he does not know his limits. He
randomly got involved in a club at Canyon High School in Anaheim
Hills and ended up being president of the club for two years.
In higher education,
Vivian first involved himself with CSULB by pledging for the
Latino-based co-ed fraternity Delta Sigma Chi.
"It fit something
I was missing at the time -- a sense of belonging on this
campus," Vivian said. "The fraternity really opened
up a lot of doors."
And this is no
exaggeration.
During his days
as a pledge, Vivian was appointed secretary for the Latino
Student Union.
"I think I
was appointed because I talk a lot," Vivian said. "My
mouth has gotten me into a lot of positions."
As the only officer
who returned to LSU, Vivian was appointed president the following
year.
"The higher
I got, the more doors opened and more opportunities occurred,"
Vivian said. "I thought to myself, 'I'm game,' so I just
did it. And it's been pretty good. No regrets so far."
Before climbing
up to the third floor of the University Student Union to the
A.S.I. governmental offices, Vivian served as chairman of
the Chicano/Latino Graduation Committee. He was also involved
in the Learning Alliance. Vivian's A.S.I. days started as
Commissioner of Awards, which led to Senator-at-Large, which
then led to his takeover of Sal Ayon's treasurer position
last year.
And here he is
today: looking ahead.
"I think next
year is going to be a good year," Vivian said. "And
I'm looking forward to making educated decisions and positive
social change."
Armando Contreras,
executive assistant to university President Robert Maxon,
shares Vivian's thrill.
"I'm excited
about Danny taking over," Contreras said. "He is
a very intelligent and enthusiastic person. He has a lot of
energy. I always knew he was active in school, but I'm most
impressed with his broad vision of how to serve the students.
He puts it all together well.
"His position
will be a great way for people to see what his talents are
and a great chance for him to get some good things done,"
Contreras continued. "We're looking forward to a great
year for the Academic Senate."
One of the many
duties of the A.S. Vice President is to serve as the Chair
of the A.S. Senate or Board of Directors. He should provide
leadership and be responsible for the efficient operation
and proper functioning of the Senate and its members, according
to the A.S. description.
"My focus
is on educating the Senate," Vivian said. "You need
to adapt to the given time and situation. Their goals become
my goals as Chair: to put them on the right direction, give
them the right tools and help them reach those goals."
Vivian said his
main goal is legislative changes.
"Everything
goes back to the Senate," Vivian said. "And that's
a lot of power. It's excellent that students hold that kind
of power, but there's also a con to that: We're students.
We have a high turnover rate; most senators don't last two
years. So when they come in, they're not fully aware of what's
going on.
"Some take
the time to educate themselves but not all do," Vivian
continued. "I can admit that I didn't. I'm looking forward
to working with the 20 students who really care about the
school and hopefully do their best job in representing the
constituents."
Vivian is not expecting
much change outside of the Senate.
"How much
can we really change when there is a direct order from the
Chancellor or anything external of the A.S.?" he said.
"We can initiate, review and pass things. We can only
suggest and ask for support."
On a more personal
level, Vivian said he has learned much about himself through
his experiences here.
"Through service
and helping others, you learn a lot of yourself," he
said. "I'm very into self-knowledge. I hope this allows
me to find the internal meaning of who I am and at the same
time let me do my job as best as possible to represent the
students."
Vivian is not the
only one who has gotten to know Vivian.
"We've gotten
to know each other a lot over the past year," said A.S.I.
President Wayne Stickney-Smith. "He's a good person.
I think he's gonna give the vice presidency a new flavor.
He has a lot of vision that he's bringing into A.S. For instance,
making the Senate functional by providing good leadership.
He's going to hold the Senate accountable to do their job.
"I have a
lot of confidence in Danny," Stickney-Smith added. "He
has the right attitude. I think he has a lot of ties to the
students and that's good because it's good for the students."
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