Hey Bulldogs! My name is Faith Van Hoven, and I am currently an ASI presidential candidate. I am currently a junior majoring in philosophy with an emphasis on law. During my time at Fresno State, I have been a part of the Filipino Club, Mock Trial, Speech and Debate, ASI and my college’s honors programs.

Through Fresno State, I attended Oxford’s Consortium for Human Rights and presented as a panelist at the Parliament of the World’s Religions in Chicago. I am running with one of my best friends, Marco Florez, an ASI Vice President of External Affairs candidate. We met as freshmen in the Fresno State ROTC program and have been inseparable for the last three years. We both understand what it means to be a Bulldog, but more importantly, we know Fresno State’s needs. Marco and I are both second-generation Bulldogs who grew up in the Valley.

We have focused our campaign on providing Fresno State students with three concise and achievable goals for our one-year term. These goals formed the platforms of access, safety and involvement. First, we believe that access starts with availability. Last semester, the library’s hours were cut from being open till midnight to closing at 11 p.m., and there is even talk of cutting those hours down even more.

According to the library’s data, between August 2023 and March 6, 895, 963 visits have occurred. The library is a centralized hub of learning and resources, so we believe that the time students have access to this space needs to be increased. We also apply this logic to the student recreation center. We want hours to increase because those resources need to be available to all of our students in a time frame that helps instead of hinders. These places are safe spaces for students, and we need to prioritize protecting them. This brings me to our next platform: safety.

Fresno State’s campus map currently only shows five blue light emergency systems locations. They are all in P5 and P6. We have more blue light emergencies that are not documented, and students have a right to know. Throughout my time on campus, I have had friends and classmates complain about walking to and from their night classes. We need safer pathways with more light illumination. This is especially important when we look at Fresno State’s Greek life.

No blue light systems are around the stadium or near those students’ houses. What is more, is that there are eight registered sex offenders living within half a mile of these students’ homes and the stadium, according to Megan’s Law. We have a duty to protect all students and have not prioritized that. Finally, with involvement, Marco and I aim to make ASI an organization that is approachable and accessible to every student. With most of our students being commuter students, we see a gap in student involvement. Student success is not only focused on academia but rooted in experiential moments.

We strive to open pathways that incentivize student involvement and make the effort worthwhile. We plan to do this by recruiting for all the ASI committees and all the faculty-run committees. Fresno State is more than one person, and even though I am running to represent the student body, I understand the limitations of my leadership and what it takes to make Fresno State more accessible, safe and involved.

I hope you can put a little faith in Marco and me as we try our best to help bring about the future of Fresno State. Thank you, and remember to vote from March 19 through the 21!