ACUI Announces New Board Members
ACUI members elected a new president and three new at-large Board of Trustee members, and the current board has named Texas State University junior Ysenia Garcia as the incoming student board member.
Yemi Gbajobi, chief executive of Arts Students’ Union at the University of Arts London, will serve as ACUI’s new president-elect. Joining her for installation to office during the 2025 Annual Conference in New York City will be at-large Board of Trustee members Katie Beaulieu, Anthony Otero, and Robert F. Stagni. Beaulieu is director of the student center and campus reservations at Wayne State University, Otero is director of the meetings and event services office at Rutgers University, and Stagni is union director at the University of Arkansas–Fayetteville.
In their candidate statements, the elected individuals made the following statements.
Gbajobi: “The organization faces several interconnected strategic challenges, but clear actions can be taken to address them. 1. Demonstrating Impact and Value: As budgets tighten, institutions are forced to decide whether to maintain their ACUI memberships or participate in our programs. ACUI must clearly showcase its value to ensure membership and engagement are seen as priorities, not optional extras. 2. Enhancing Volunteer Opportunities: Volunteers are the backbone of ACUI, but increasing personal and professional demands make it harder to participate. Prioritizing a flexible and inclusive volunteer recognition program will help campuses see the value of ACUI’s work and support broader engagement. 3. Adapting to the Changing Student Affairs Landscape: The student affairs landscape is rapidly evolving, with ongoing challenges related to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), rising living costs, and mental health crises. Engaging student affairs professionals, particularly those working in areas like basic needs and multicultural centers, will ensure our members can confidently navigate these complex changes.
Beaulieu: “I believe the most important strategic issues facing ACUI are volunteer and membership retention, growing our profession, and advocacy. ACUI needs to find a balance between holding volunteers accountable for their commitments while also giving each other grace. I believe every individual who connects with ACUI should find belonging in our community. Belonging is different for everyone, and since the great resignation, our colleagues have entered this field in more diverse ways than ever before. We cannot rely on the same engagement strategies for all generations in our field. As leaders of this association, we need to adapt to make sure all volunteers feel respected, supported, and appreciated. “
Otero: “I think regional engagement is one of the most important strategic issues facing the association. The association has done a great job in ensuring that the regional task force’s findings pave the way for regional directors to tackle this issue directly. I still think there is more to be done by establishing a sense of ownership for one’s professional development within the regions. The best way to do this is to stress the importance of professional development and how it goes hand-in-hand with association volunteering. We need to get back to a time in which the simple act of shoulder-tapping someone meant that volunteering provided a sense of community by passing the baton from one person to another.”
Stagni: “ACUI serves a broad array of institutions, spanning multiple continents, several geographic regions, and countless specific situations. Our members’ individual contexts and specific needs are as varied and nuanced as our members themselves. Serving such a diverse membership base requires broad-reaching programs, accessible services, efficient processes, and meaningful opportunities for networking, learning, sharing, and strategizing. In short, ACUI’s greatest challenge is to be both broad and specific, detailed and nimble, far-reaching and localized. We must maximize the benefits our members receive, deepen institutional ties, and expand to new campuses.”
Additionally, Garcia made the following statement in her application to serve on the board: “The Association’s most important strategic issue is developing a larger student body. Students need help trying to join ACUI, including some of the registration fees associated with attending or joining opportunities provided by ACUI. I was lucky to be given the chance to participate in the Region II conference through my Student Center, but many students were not given the opportunity because of funding. This becomes even harder for students on campuses who aren’t members of ACUI. The Association is already on the right track, having available scholarships for students to apply to waive fees and offering participants the option to donate to ACUI.”
Elections were held for open positions throughout November 2024. Overall, there were 234 ballots cast out of 1,016 eligible voters, representing a 23% voter turnout, compared to a five-year average of 18.4% participation. A detailed overview of the participation in this year’s Board of Trustees election, including a voter breakdown, is available here.
Ranked Choice Voting was used for the election, which means voters could cast their ballot for all of the candidates, ranking their top candidate first, followed by other candidates according to their preference for selection. A more detailed description of ranked choice voting can be found here, and a YouTube explanation is here.
