By Matt Criswell

The third candidate running for Associated Students, Inc. president is 23-year-old graduate student Lizbeth De La Cruz.

De La Cruz graduated from Fresno State in the spring of 2013 with honors, completing her bachelor’s degree in four years. She is a San Pedro, Calif., native, but has lived in Fresno since 2006. She graduated from Hoover High School in 2009.

De La Cruz is involved in many clubs on campus and is president of Club Austral, a Spanish club on campus that promotes the importance of literature, writing and cultural awareness in the San Joaquin Valley. ­She is also the editor of Revista Literaria Austral and a writer for the newspaper Community Alliance.

The Collegian sat down with De La Cruz and asked her about what she plans to do if elected president, and on what platform she plans to run on.

The Collegian: What inspired you to run for ASI president?

De La Cruz: I feel that I understand students on many levels, especially since I am in the master’s program and have undergone the process of being an undergrad. I feel that being a first-generation college student who has earned her bachelor’s and is working toward a higher degree puts me in the position of a facilitator to help students accomplish their goals, because I understand their importance and value.

Ever since I started my undergrad, I have always been involved in school. I was never just a student. I have always been a student, a co-worker and a leader. I love to be involved. It’s something my parents taught me.

What would you like to accomplish if elected?

I have a special interest in making the ASI-student relationship stronger than what it is now in order to have more students involved on campus, especially with the student government. I also want to work with students from different colleges on campus to inform them of the great opportunities offered by ASI to help fund events on campus.

Based on my interaction with students from different departments, I have noticed that the parking pass price and the availability of parking is still an important issue for them. I want to be a source of help in providing an option of parking passes that are not too expensive and still working toward maintaining and improving the security in the parking lots.

What will your biggest challenge be if elected president?

I think that if I were elected my biggest challenge would be the transition, learning and applying the duties that the ASI president should perform. I always keep the mentality that nothing is impossible. With dedication and persistence, anything is attainable.

Is there a specific platform that you are running on?

The acronym for my platform is P.A.W.S. The four main points I want to emphasize are to: promote student involvement on campus, add more library hours, work towards student education success and to work toward a more safe and secure campus.

I am also focusing on promoting that tuition cost stays low and that no unnecessary fees are applied to student tuition.