Dylan Kowlessar / The Avion
Freshman, BS Aerospace Physiology
"I'm from Wyoming and have been active in the Student Council for about 6 years; I was treasurer for 2 of those years and loved keeping everyone on track with funding and updates of their budgets when needed. I want to focus on new club funding, and I would like to try to attend their meetings in person to hear them out and advocate for them during Student Government Association meetings. I like to be open-minded and find a middle ground in all places, and with the recent unrest in how the budget proposal process went in the student body, I want to advocate for a more accessible platform. I hope to try to address the places that can be improved in the process by hearing feedback from the treasurers of RSOs."
What makes you a qualified candidate for this position?
"I am a qualified candidate for this position because I have years of experience in student council, specifically 6 years in student council and 2 years as Treasurer. I used to be a Treasurer, and I have always enjoyed doing it. I am proficient in Excel and would love to help in any circumstances that I can. I am always open to learning new things and hearing everyone out to help find compromise. While I am tech savvy, I am also financially literate and have always been able to follow balance charts and keep budgets where they need to be. I love to present new ideas for funding ideas. For me, keeping track of money comes naturally, and I have a genuine passion for advocating on behalf of students. I am ready to contribute my skills, experience, and dedication to the success of our student community and the institution as a whole."
What is the purpose of the Student Treasury?
"The Student Treasury operates under the oversight of an elected treasurer and a team of six elected treasury board members. Its primary objective is to reimburse-type funding. The purpose of reimburse-type funding in Student Treasury is to help keep budgets on track and help allocate funds to where they get the best use out of them. It is also very important to keep everything organized and have a Student Treasury set in place for people to organize, track, and advise money spending. The Student Treasury helps more than just the Registered Student Organizations; it also helps the Institution as a whole in many ways, like when we look at our student-run and Student Government Association-funded clubs like The Avion, Touch n Go, and even ERT. These clubs aim to serve the student body as a whole in different situations. The Student Treasury is always helpful for investing in the student's wellbeing."
How would you define risk management, and how would you relate this skill to your position as Student Treasury Board Member?
"Risk management is the practice of identifying, assessing, and mitigating potential risks within an organization. It involves understanding uncertainties that could impact an organization’s objectives and developing strategies to minimize negative consequences. As a Student Treasury Board Member, this skill is crucial. It is relevant to be aware and understand that in some of the financial investments we make for clubs, we need to understand the interest and impact that each club will make for the student body. Risk management helps the treasury board navigate financial complexities, safeguard resources, and make good decisions that benefit the student community. Risk management is always good to have in your toolkit of skills in order to keep looking for potential risks in this type of position, whether we are looking to make sure that a club has proper interest or that a division is still keeping up with what it needs to do to serve our community, it's always good to keep active and aware of potential risks."
How do you plan to ensure the organizations you represent receive the funding they need without putting others at a disadvantage?
"I would advocate for a needs-based allocation system. Rather than distributing funds uniformly, we should consider the unique requirements of each organization. Clubs surrounding students with greater needs—whether academic, socioemotional, or health-related—should receive more resources. This ensures that disadvantaged students receive the support necessary for their success. It would also be optimal to consider a multifaceted rating system for clubs that would allow us to direct funds better. We should also keep a look out for clubs that would work well together and how some of their ideals are the same so that they can help each other out. It also is good to keep an open mind that everyone would like something out of the different clubs, whether that is to build volunteer hours, run educational tours for underprivileged kids, hang out and destress from school, and even compete against other schools, it is always a good idea to hear everyone out and try to get funding represented accordingly."
