By Stephanie Holland / Editor In Chief
By Stephanie Holland / Editor In Chief
As the youngest candidate running for a seat on the Riverside Community College District Board of Trustees, Grey Frandsen believes he has a clearer understanding of what today’s college students are going through.
Frandsen thinks the number one issue facing college students is access to courses.
“If we don’t have the right classes, at the right time, in the right places, we are not serving our students appropriately…or facilitating success as they move toward their academic goals,” he said.
With class cuts and budget restrictions interrupting educational goals, students’ frustration with the current state of things has become an important issue.
“For the students that are coming in, and for the students that are there now, I have been a huge advocate for an aggressive conversation about how to reintroduce those classes,” he said.
While some of the other candidates are focused on fiscal stability for the district, Frandsen has centered his campaign on meeting the direct needs of students.
The agenda featured on his campaign website includes expanded class offerings, expanded support for faculty and staff and greater access for underserved communities.
“Let’s help expand campus services and student services so that when students are waiting that five hour period before their next class…how do we make sure they have good internet access, high speed internet access, access to online encyclopedias…so they can make the most of their time on campus,” he said.
Frandsen also expressed his support for the RCCD vocational programs and explained how pivotal they are to the community.
“As a community it’s incumbent on us to invest in vocational and technical trade programs so that we can generate a workforce that’s capable of helping our economy expand in the next five to ten years,” he said. “The worst thing we can do is shut down our vocational and technical training programs.”
Like many of the other candidates, Frandsen believes that as state funding becomes more unreliable, the district must begin to look to alternative sources for outside money.
“If we’re going to have a healthy fiscal climate in the next couple of years it’s going to require a diversification of funding sources,” he said. “We can’t just expect Sacramento to send down what we need.”
Having served two US Secretaries of State and a US Senator following 9/11, another issue on Frandsen’s agenda is expanding veterans’ affairs as they continue their studies within the district.
“We have to ensure that they’re at the front of the line and offered a curriculum and most importantly the services that they may need,” he said.
At 32, Frandsen feels it is vital for young people to stay informed about politics.
“There is no more important mandate for young people,” he said. “If young people don’t vote we will have elected representatives that really do not sufficiently represent what I believe to be one of the most important generations in decades.”
Though he may not have the experience as an educator that some of his opponents have, Frandsen believes his fresh perspective is what the RCCD Board of Trustees needs.
“I’m the only candidate who has pledged to give all of the cash stipend that I would get to student scholarships at the RCCD Foundation,” he said.
He also understands that if elected he will have to be the voice for the students that he has promised to be.
“There’s a large amount of requirement on me to give a real voice to student concerns, which why I campaigned on student success,” he said.
