Kim Corona
kicorona@ursinus.edu
Last semester, Ursinus College Student Government announced juniors Jacob Kang and Maggie Frymoyer as the new president and vice president, restructuring its leadership halfway through the school year.
The news came after the former President left her post due to unfortunate circumstances.
Kang, an International Relations and Economics major, says he was ready to take on the role of president in a rushed manner. He was prepared to get things done and to work hard for the Ursinus community, though he disagreed with how the situation with the previous president was handled.
“My first thought was definitely that of anger. It is my personal belief, not that of the student government, that the previous president did not deserve what came to her,” he said.
Nevertheless, he understood he was now the person the Ursinus community could voice their concerns to.
“That said, I understand that is not necessarily my role. My role would now be to bring students back together after a contentious time,” he said.
Frymoyer, a Politics and Anthropology/Sociology major, added, “I have been on student government for three years now, so I definitely feel as though I was capable to do the job.”
Indeed, prior to assuming their new titles, Kang and Frymoyer had worked together in student government.
“I’ve worked with Jacob before and I know he’s hard-working and genuine, so I was happy to do whatever I could to help him,” Frymoyer said.
Kang discussed the goals he hopes to accomplish while serving his term, the main one being helping all students feel more welcomed at Ursinus, as well as the pressure he feels serving as president as an Asian-American.
“Without getting too into the weeds, as a person of color, expectations are different for me than others. That said, I feel fully capable and I know that I have an incredible team that can back me up,” he said.
Frymoyer added, “Jacob made it clear from the beginning that his position as a person of color and mine as a female in UCSG were to be used as an asset to understand students, not as another way to justify dismissing student opinion.”
Kang believes the Ursinus community needs to work on reassuring students they don’t stand alone. He also hopes to reform the justice system and to work on issues of inclusion on campus.
Frymoyer’s goals include being a resource for Kang and the student body, to make sure their voices are heard.
“I want students to understand they are not powerless within the community, and there are people who genuinely care about improving the campus for the students,” she said.
“I am not here to represent the school administration, I am here to represent the student body. My priority is making sure that individuals in the Ursinus community are held accountable for their actions, and furthermore to create campus spaces that are inclusive to conversation that will make the campus a more genuine place,” said Frymoyer.
“I want to let the student body, every student, know that I stand with them and will work for them during my term here,” said Kang.