Raymond Perez, one of three candidates for vice president of Syracuse University’s Student Association, sees the position as a way to give back to the campus community.

Perez, a junior public health major, said he did not feel comfortable when he first arrived on SU’s campus. He remembers having trouble relating to other people on campus.

Slowly, Perez began to adjust to life on campus with the help of people around him. He gained a scholarship through Student Support Services, a program to aid students who are struggling financially. When his house burned down last year in an electrical fire, students at SU donated moneyto help Perez replace what he had lost. The Hendricks Chapel Food Pantry provided him with food during his summer classes, he said.

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The help Perez received from others eventually inspired him to run for SA’s vice president alongside presidential candidate Jalen Nash.

“People have given so much to me.” Perez said. “And now it’s my turn to give back.”

Perez has no experience in SA, but he is involved with multiple other groups. He is a member ofLambda Upsilon Lambda, a multicultural fraternity. He also worked behind the scenes of the Recognize Us movement last spring, which was created after the release of videos, obtained by The Daily Orange in April 2018, showed students in the Theta Tau house engaging in behavior that Chancellor Kent Syverud has called “extremely racist, anti-Semitic, homophobic, sexist, and hostile to people with disabilities.”

Perez helped organize protests in front of Chancellor Kent Syverud’s house and in the Schine Student Center. He also worked to develop the demands that Recognize Us presented to the university.

Perez isn’t normally in the spotlight – running for SA vice president is stepping out of his comfort zone, he said. In doing so, he said he hopes to help other students who don’t feel comfortable at SU.

“Syracuse right now is at a point where there is a lot of work that needs to be done,” Perez said. “And we have to work together to lift it up.”

Nash and Perez are running on three campaign pillars: access, communication and safety. He said he wants to make sure everyone can access the opportunities SU has to offer. Students, for example, might not know about services like the Office of Multicultural Affairs or Student Support Services, Perez said.

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Jeffrey Peterson, their campaign manager, said Nash and Perez are looking to increasestudents’ awareness of SA. He said they want students to know that SA is a resource they can turn to.

Perez said that while he has never felt comfortable approaching SA himself, he will work to make the organization a comfortable space for all students by forming relationships across campus.

“For me, my passion is to help others and to make our community better,” he said.

DISCLAIMER: Jalen Nash is an assistant copy editor in The Daily Orange’s features department. He does not cover Student Association, report for or edit with The D.O.’s news staff.

Published on April 3, 2019 at 9:10 pm

Contact Patrick: pjlineha@syr.edu