University of Texas at Dallas students elected two veteran representatives from opposing tickets who both want to make improvements to the campus community as their new Student Government leaders.
President Kruthi Kanduri from the Purpose ticket ran on a platform of making a larger impact on campus, holding student senators more accountable and advocating for students.
Vice president Margaret Moore, a National Merit Scholar, from the BrighterUTD ticket ran on a platform of strengthening campus culture, increasing student access to opportunities, supporting mental health initiatives and improving sustainability.
They will represent the student body for the 2022-2023 academic year, succeeding Ryan Short, a political science senior, and Imaan Razak Macchiwalla, a marketing junior.
Kruthi Kanduri
Position: president
Major: cognitive science, junior
What previous experience do you have?
On Student Government, I previously served as a freshman senator on Academic Affairs, and this past year I served as the Academic Affairs chair as well. I also won Freshman Senator of the Year for the 2020-2021 term.
How else are you involved?
I’m the executive assistant for Kappa Alpha Theta and the College Panhellenic Council president. I also am a peer advisor for Phases 1-3 in University Village.
Why did you run for office?
I believe that Student Government has so much more potential than a lot of the student body realizes. I want to be able to be someone who makes Student Government a more productive and functional organization.
What are your strategic goals?
Advocating for the full restoration of departments like the library, Student Counseling Center, the International Students and Scholars Office and other resources commonly used by students; and creating documents that all senators receive by the beginning of their fall semester that will serve as a navigational tool throughout their terms.
What is your proudest accomplishment at UT Dallas?
The work I’ve done on Student Government as well as the Honorlock and [COVID-19] de-densification resolutions.
What do you enjoy most about UT Dallas?
The people I meet at UTD the most. This school attracts a unique combination of students from all over the world, and I love how many different experiences and types of people I get to meet every day.
What would you like to see improved?
The culture. I hope that the changes and projects that happen throughout my term can be ones that can help the student body view their college experience even slightly more positively.
What’s one piece of advice you’d offer a new Comet?
You get what you put into this school. UTD can be a very rewarding experience with opportunities that you may not have elsewhere as long as you’re willing to get involved and put in the effort.
Margaret Moore
Position: vice president
Major: international political economy, junior
What previous experience do you have?
I served as chair of the Student Affairs committee this past term and as a regular freshman senator before that.
How else are you involved?
I’ve worked for The Mercury, although I will step down from my job there to focus on Student Government. I’m involved with Novis, Pride at UTD and a few other clubs on campus.
Why did you run for office?
I ran because my experience and training level for the position aligned with the peer pressure to do so, as well as my desire to work on certain projects and goals that went beyond the scope of the Student Affairs committee. It was time to step up.
What are your strategic goals?
We’ve got to make Student Government relevant to the student body as a way to connect with administration and create constructive change on campus. That includes revamping our communications and marketing strategy; setting up traditions; fixing some accessibility issues; improving some internal senate processes; adding a Student Government presence at orientation events and first-year seminars; and borrowing best practices and ideas from other universities.
What is your proudest accomplishment at UT Dallas?
The [student art initiative] Blank Space Project. It wasn’t huge, but we’ve compiled a lot of lessons and planning wisdom to implement next year. I believe in its potential to bring people together and promote student work on campus.
What do you enjoy most about UT Dallas?
There’s always something new and interesting happening. We’ve got Anime Orchestra Ensemble performances, service dogs being trained, bee colonies being surveyed. … There’s this diversity of background and perspective that comes together to create an amazing campus experience, if you know where to look.
What would you like to see improved?
Student engagement. We have so many wonderful things happening on campus, but too many folks don’t know about them.
What’s one piece of advice you’d offer a new Comet?
Get involved. This campus offers so many opportunities for career, intellectual and personal growth, but you’ve got to leave your comfort zone and go get them.
About Student Government
The mission of Student Government is to ensure that UT Dallas is fully committed to serve the collective interests of the student body. In this capacity, it serves as the official student voice to UT Dallas administration, the UT System Board of Regents and other governmental entities.
Structure: The Student Senate is a diverse body of senators from each academic classification and school. With the exception of officers, each senator serves on a committee. Each senator is either elected or appointed to a one-year term. The president and vice president are elected by the student body. The secretary and committee chairs are nominated and selected by the Student Senate.
Senate Committees: Academic Affairs; Communications; Graduate and International Affairs; Legislative Affairs; Residential Student Affairs; Student Affairs; Technology; Green Initiative; and Diversity and Equity.
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