Sonal Agarwal (
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) Hello Graduate Employees, I am Sonal Agarwal, a third semester student in the college of Management. I am really excited about this opportunity to be a part of the committee of Graduate Employees (GEO) and view this position as one of great responsibility.
I have worked for two consecutive semesters as a graduate assistant at the college of management. My experience working as a graduate assistant helped me to understand the needs of graduate employees and I strongly believe in taking a stand for the benefit of this assembly.
I sincerely appreciate the GEO’s efforts in the recent increase in hourly pay and the decrease in working hours of graduate employees without compromising the benefits, but there is definitely a need for even better policies for UMASS Boston graduate employees. I especially advocate equality in employee benefits among all State university campuses. I strongly insist in improving the GEO campus presence, making graduate employees aware of their rights, involving graduate students and employees more actively in the union, and in turn developing a stronger and louder voice for getting better policies and contracts for all Boston campus graduate employees.
As a Graduate employee member I would be committed in taking the GEO Contract negotiation to the next level, to make the life of graduate employee better with better pay, better fees and better health benefits, improving participation of graduate employees in the union and coordinating action with other activist groups for further support. I am sure that I would be an efficient organizer and would be able to serve the interest of the GEO and the members fairly. I do count for your vote to be able to help to fulfill the cause. Thank you!
I am Varun Bansal, a student of the college of management doing an MBA in finance & marketing. I have served as a Graduate assistant for the last two semester, and this is my third semester. I am actively associated with most of the Graduate associations of the school.
GEO is working very hard, and the achievements like increasing the pay by around 13% and reducing the work on Graduate Assistants by 10% this year is very good, but still we are far behind the benefits which other campuses of UMASS are getting. This achievement of GEO motivated me to work for our rights and educated me about the differences in the benefits we are getting.
I had worked for NGO, which is related to blind children, where the duties I performed was taking the grants from the state government, negotiating on the benefit contracts, organizing the social awareness events, and protesting for our rights. I think I will be able to use my past experience there to work for GEO. I am in contact with many graduate assistants and can motivate them to actively stand for GEO.
Greg Johns (
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My name is Greg Johns. I am a first-term graduate student within the English department, specifically composition.
I seek the GEO position primarily to take a more active role during my graduate school experience. Because I am a union member by default of my assistantship, I think it is more than important to take an active stance within the organization. I have a saying: Instead of just complaining, offer a suggestion or an alternative. The GEO is a great vehicle for offering suggestions for change that may be capable of benefiting all graduate student employees.
Previously, I spent three years as a reporter covering local and state politics. My time in that capacity allowed me to gain a fuller understanding of the importance of contributing to our society at all levels. While it is not a widely known organization, the GEO is one avenue by which to get involved at the micro-level. And, knowing the organization is responsible for making sure graduate students are treated fairly, I'd like to do my part to continue that tradition.
Ijeoma Njoku (
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My name is Ijeoma Njoku. I am a second year master’s degree candidate in the department of Dispute Resolution in the McCormack Graduate School of Policy Studies. In the course of my academic endeavors at Umass Boston, I have acquired skills in advocacy, negotiation, mediation, research, office management, organizing, etc. I conduct research for Professor David Matz. I have also worked with other professors on campus. My research interest broadly covers the role of African women in governance and peace building efforts on the continent. I am also interested in the economic empowerment of youth and women in Sub-Saharan Africa.
I am interested in joining the Umass Boston GEO committee because of my desire to advocate for equity between the policies of graduate employees at Umass Amherst and our university. I believe that it is great injustice for our students to be denied benefits that might be available simply because they haven’t asked for them. I do not come from a standpoint of entitlement but of negotiation; especially since bargaining got our counterparts at Umass Amherst their benefits. I consider Umass Amherst only as a model, because we must discuss issues as they affect us directly on our own campus.
I am a native of Nigeria. While there is relative diversity on the current Umass Boston GEO committee, I believe that a strong and knowledgeable voice from Africa would add to the richness of our dialogues. I am counting on your vote. Thank you.
Jenny Pessolano (
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Hello fellow graduate employees! I am Jenny Pessolano, a first semester research assistant in the Dispute Resolution Program. I am excited about the opportunity to be a GEO committee member and am confident in my abilities to increase union visibility on campus, negotiate progressive contracts for all graduate employees, and prepare GEO for the next phase of the union's development.
GEO is making strides to become a legitimate representation on campus. With my contribution, I am certain that GEO will continue to experience achievement on a variety of fronts.
I come to this election with a strong academic background, as well as a varied work history that makes me qualified to communicate with the school's officials, coordinate with activist groups, and work side by side with the committee members already in place. I am certain of my ability to negotiate solid employee contracts as I am "state certified" in conflict resolution. This certification dictates my ability to negotiate with integrity while ensuring that the diverse needs of a diverse workforce are met. In addition, I bring state legislative experience, which reveals my understanding of the lobbying process as well as the need for a clear set of goals. My extensive corporate experience also provides me with the skills to be firm when necessary. In the past I have proven myself to be a determined, organized, and passionate worker, and am certain that will carry over into this position.
I will help to raise GEO's visibility on campus in order to make sure our needs are spoken for and recognized. GEO will continue to grow as a legitimate representation on campus as members feel united around common goals: We DEMAND better health care benefits; We DEMAND greater pay; We DEMAND a degree of certainty that our employee positions are permanent!
Rachita Sudarshan (
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Hi, I am Rachita Sudarshan and I am running for the position to become a member of Graduate Employee Organization (GEO) Board at UMass Boston.
I am an international student pursuing my Masters in Business administration (MBA) from fall ‘08 and my major is Finance & Information Systems. I have a bachelor’s degree in Electrical & Electronics engineering and I have been a Technical analyst and Offshore Consultant at Cognizant Technology Solutions, Bangalore, India. Presently at UMass, I am a Research Assistant at Management Science & Information System (MSIS) department and I am currently working on my research paper that will be presented at AMCIS in 2010. I also work at the Veterans Upward Bound at UMass Boston as a science tutor. Also, I am a member of the Graduate Indian Student Association (GISA) board as the Public Relations coordinator.
From high school days, I have been continuously striving to fulfill my aspirations of leadership and making a difference. I have organized various activities in college and in Cognizant (where I worked) for peers and employees and have been a very active part in all kinds of extra curricular activities. I have also been an active part of many NGOs like Man towards Kindness, Parikrama, SOS Village and Child Relief & You (C.R.Y) in India and I worked for the betterment of the community.
I realize the importance of holding this position at the GEO. GEO is the platform that will give me immense ground and opportunities to make lives of graduate students better in the University. If I am elected for this position, I would consider it to be my vital responsibility to represent the needs of all its members and strive for its fulfillment. Also, as an International Graduate Student I realize the issues that they face and as a GEO committee member I would like to voice all our opinions to make every graduate student’s life at UMass Boston memorable.
