Destinie Freeman
- College of Arts and Sciences Senator
Additional Information
Why are you running for Student Government?
I have been moderately more involved in Student Government compared to the average student over the last year due to my involvement with the Women and Gender Equity Center (WGEC). During the past year, I have gone to multiple SGUNO meetings to represent the WGEC in which I left frustrated because I didn't feel that ALL students were being adequately represented.
As a parenting student who also grew up in the foster care system and poverty, I didn't feel my voice, or students whose experiences are similar to my own, were being represented or taken into account. Despite the frustration (which is present when discussing most government entities) that I have occasionally felt with SGUNO, I have thoroughly enjoyed most of my interactions and involvement with it.
I met with multiple senators to address issues throughout the year. I love that some senators went out of their way to meet with other student representatives to gain other perspectives on the challenges that UNO students face. I think SGUNO does some really great advocacy work and I want to continue my advocacy for femme, queer, and parenting students by being a voice for them on Student Senate.
Which issue do you think should be changed or improved on campus?
As a parenting student, I think I bring an interesting perspective to the table when it comes to how inaccessible our campus can be for pregnant and parenting students. Last spring, I worked with parking services to change their accessible parking policy to include pregnant students; last fall, I worked with SGUNO senator Cassidy Morse on a bill that was presented to Student Senate regarding pregnancy specific parking on campus; I helped Vice Chancellor Cathy Pettid and the director of housing in the first step of a project to improve housing on campus for parenting students; and in my time as director of the WGEC, I have worked to make our office in Milo Bail Student Center a resource where parenting students can bring their kids to nap, play, breastfeed while parents study or take a break between classes.
Despite all that has been done this past year to better accommodate pregnant and parenting students, there is still much to be done. The College of Saint Mary has the best program in the country for pregnant and parenting students—if we want to be more competitive and accommodating to this unique body of students, we need to offer even more resources than we already have.
I think SGUNO has the potential to help improve campus for pregnant and parenting students by advocating for an established agency specifically for pregnant and parenting students, more resources, and pushing even harder on pregnancy specific parking.
What makes you qualified to sit on Student Government?
I genuinely care about ALL fellow students at UNO and want to help make our campus as great as it can be. This position wouldn’t be something I would take lightly and/or do passively—and I think the dedication and passion that I have to make UNO even better is more qualifying than any credential or leadership example I could provide.
However, because I want to be seriously considered for Student Senate, it is worth mentioning that I have been the director of the Women and Gender Equity Center for the past year. In this time, I have worked both alone and in various groups to instill change on UNO campus. I advocated for the WGEC and QTS in front of Student Senate when the support from SGUNO for those two organizations seemed to be in question; I worked with parking services to change the accessible parking policy to include pregnant women; I helped Senator Cassidy Morse to draft and present a more formal and permanent policy change for pregnant parking on-campus; and I expanded the WGEC’s programming to include parenting students and sex trafficking.
Additional Information
Why are you running for Student Government?
I have been moderately more involved in Student Government compared to the average student over the last year due to my involvement with the Women and Gender Equity Center (WGEC). During the past year, I have gone to multiple SGUNO meetings to represent the WGEC in which I left frustrated because I didn't feel that ALL students were being adequately represented.
As a parenting student who also grew up in the foster care system and poverty, I didn't feel my voice, or students whose experiences are similar to my own, were being represented or taken into account. Despite the frustration (which is present when discussing most government entities) that I have occasionally felt with SGUNO, I have thoroughly enjoyed most of my interactions and involvement with it.
I met with multiple senators to address issues throughout the year. I love that some senators went out of their way to meet with other student representatives to gain other perspectives on the challenges that UNO students face. I think SGUNO does some really great advocacy work and I want to continue my advocacy for femme, queer, and parenting students by being a voice for them on Student Senate.
Which issue do you think should be changed or improved on campus?
As a parenting student, I think I bring an interesting perspective to the table when it comes to how inaccessible our campus can be for pregnant and parenting students. Last spring, I worked with parking services to change their accessible parking policy to include pregnant students; last fall, I worked with SGUNO senator Cassidy Morse on a bill that was presented to Student Senate regarding pregnancy specific parking on campus; I helped Vice Chancellor Cathy Pettid and the director of housing in the first step of a project to improve housing on campus for parenting students; and in my time as director of the WGEC, I have worked to make our office in Milo Bail Student Center a resource where parenting students can bring their kids to nap, play, breastfeed while parents study or take a break between classes.
Despite all that has been done this past year to better accommodate pregnant and parenting students, there is still much to be done. The College of Saint Mary has the best program in the country for pregnant and parenting students—if we want to be more competitive and accommodating to this unique body of students, we need to offer even more resources than we already have.
I think SGUNO has the potential to help improve campus for pregnant and parenting students by advocating for an established agency specifically for pregnant and parenting students, more resources, and pushing even harder on pregnancy specific parking.
What makes you qualified to sit on Student Government?
I genuinely care about ALL fellow students at UNO and want to help make our campus as great as it can be. This position wouldn’t be something I would take lightly and/or do passively—and I think the dedication and passion that I have to make UNO even better is more qualifying than any credential or leadership example I could provide.
However, because I want to be seriously considered for Student Senate, it is worth mentioning that I have been the director of the Women and Gender Equity Center for the past year. In this time, I have worked both alone and in various groups to instill change on UNO campus. I advocated for the WGEC and QTS in front of Student Senate when the support from SGUNO for those two organizations seemed to be in question; I worked with parking services to change the accessible parking policy to include pregnant women; I helped Senator Cassidy Morse to draft and present a more formal and permanent policy change for pregnant parking on-campus; and I expanded the WGEC’s programming to include parenting students and sex trafficking.