Statement of Purpose & Position Platform
Justin P. Boren
Candidate for GPSA Vice President of Internal Affairs
February 22, 2008
Presented to the Graduate and Professional Students of Arizona State University
My intent to serve the graduate community of Arizona State as GPSA Vice President of Internal Affairs stems from my desire to give back to the organization that has done so much for me. From funding grant applications to providing travel assistance, the Graduate and Professional Student Association of Arizona State University helps graduate students on a large scale basis. While most graduate students are not aware of the work required to administer these programs, I understand the complexities associated with the office of the Vice President of Internal Affairs. With my experience as an organizational consultant, I am well-versed in the inner workings of complex organizations, such as Arizona State University. As your Vice President of Internal Affairs, I will be able to leverage my resources as well as the University’s to work to afford for even more benefits to graduate and professional students. There are three planks to my platform, which will accomplish the duties, responsibilities, and goals of the office of Vice President of Internal Affairs: Experience, Efficiency and Modernization, and Publicity.
Experience
Prior to consideration for candidacy of this office, I took a long look at the requirements of the office. Indeed, the VPIA is responsible for administration of most of the programs that GPSA offers. My experience in GPSA as Director of Issues Research as well as working with the Assembly places me in a good position to know the requirements of the office and to be able to execute them effectively. Furthermore, I have worked in many organizations as a consultant, navigating bureaucratic intricacies with great success. Additionally, my education in organizational communication lends itself a perfect compliment for this position. The VPIA has many responsibilities; my work, life, and educational experience will be put to good use in service to the ASU community.
Efficiency & Modernization
One of the great challenges facing the VPIA is the fact that much of the administration of programs requires a great deal of paperwork. As your Vice President of Internal Affairs, I will work closely with our Director of Technology as well as 3rd party software vendors to modernize our application and submission process for the research grant application as well as the travel grant process. This will give GPSA members the ability to use our programs in a much broader capacity, provide for easier application processing, shorten the application-to-award delivery time, and provide better feedback to applicants.