By Vicki Franks ’20
Arts & Life Editor
Josh Grambow (‘20) and Marina Bueno (‘19) were announced the winners for next year’s GCSA president and vice president on March 23, with 56% of the vote.
Grambow, a familiar name for those involved with GCSA, has been involved with student government since high school as well as for the past two years here at Gordon. He is currently serving as Vice President of Academic Affairs. With this role, Grambow has incited change by advocating for the “first year bridge program,” creating more student spaces, and may other reforms.
“Student government has been something that I’m really passionate about,” Grambow said. He went on to describe his commitment to student government in high school and how he brought that passion with him to college. “That desire to serve my peers through student government or whatever way I can has been something that has been a consistent desire for me,” he said.
With his extensive experience in student government, Grambow is ready to put his ideas into action. “From the past two years I have so many ideas pent up of not only how to change GCSA from the inside but [also] how we can better serve students.”
At Grambow’s side, Marina Bueno is also prepared for bringing change to Gordon’s campus next year as vice president. Bueno has been active on campus through clubs and Model UN.
“Recent experiences, especially Model UN… highlighted what I’m good at,” Bueno said, “and I feel like student government really fits into what I’ve been learning about myself—I really want to serve student in way that I would be communicating with them and really representing their desires.”
The vision Grambow and Bueno share for this upcoming school year is one that strives for more engagement between GCSA and the student body.
“We’re elected and not appointed for a reason, and it’s because we’re supposed to be accountable to the student body and we’re supposed to represent their views well,” Grambow said. He went on to say that he hopes to make representatives more accessible to the student body by hosting office hours each week.
There are several changes that Grambow and Bueno are pushing for as they take on their new positions. Those changes include creating more student spaces that do not require key access, creating a Pep Band to promote more school spirit, advocating for more diverse worship in chapel, and waiving PE requirements for student athletes and recreation, sport and wellness majors.
Grambow and Bueno are also fighting to make Gordon more accessible to those with disabilities. One way they are doing this is by pushing for the walkways around Bennet and the HUD dorms to be repaved so that they are more wheelchair friendly.
Club management reform is another issue the two will be tackling in their new roles. Their goal is to support Gordon’s clubs and help them run more efficiently. The Executive Council, made up of clubs deemed to be critical to student life here at Gordon, will be meeting for the first time later this month. Grambow and Bueno are hoping to continue to push for more Executive council meetings and communication between GCSA and the clubs.
“It’s something I’m passionate about since I’ve been in different clubs before,” Bueno said. “And I’m really looking forward to communicating with these clubs that do create a big impact on campus, like Advocates for a Sustainable Future, and seeing how we can better represent them and make sure they’re doing the work that they want to be doing.”
Grambow and Bueno see themselves as partners who work together to listen to students and to create change. While there are distinctions within their roles, their responsibilities are intertwined.
As Bueno put it, “we would be president together, we would be a team together.”
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