Campus Y to elect future co-presidents

The candidates running unopposed for co-presidents of the Campus Y want to make social justice accessible.

Junior Natalie Borrego and sophomore Cora Went said their mission is to motivate students and communities to work together as the organization drives social change.

“We also want to transform the Y’s space so that when you walk in, you know where you are, what staff members are doing and exactly how to get involved,” Went said.

The candidates spoke at a forum Tuesday to tell students how their plans will foster creativity, collaboration and community at UNC’s Campus Y.

“We have seen the community within the Y growing and becoming more established,” Went said.

“We want to keep that going — planning more times where members can come together.”

The election will be held Tuesday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., open only to dues-paying members.

The pair said one of the major goals for the upcoming year is to break the stereotypical image of a Campus Y member.

“It’s our job to challenge that stereotype and also work with individuals in order to break it,” Borrego said.

“If we don’t understand their communities, how do we expect them to understand ours?”

Went said while the Campus Y has always been a welcoming place for her, that has not always been the case for others.

“We need our leaders to be deliberate and reach out to other people, expanding beyond those we already know.”

Borrego and Went will succeed seniors Mackenzie Thomas and Jagir Pate. Thomas has been a co-president for two one-year terms.

The candidates said they have a personal connection to the Y that makes them dedicated to making a positive difference there.

“The atmosphere of having so many people around you really drives you,” Borrego said.

“There’s no other place like this on campus that allows you to learn how to maximize your impact, and people believe in you no matter how crazy of an idea you have — passion lives here.”

The candidates stressed that they wanted members to know what it means to be a part of the Y community.

“Being a Y member means that you want to have an impact both on the community in which you work and on the students too,” Went said.

Zach Bijesse, a sophomore philosophy and sociology major and a member of the Y, said he is looking forward to the new leadership.

“My biggest anticipation is seeing more collaboration between different groups on campus — including both groups in the Y and groups outside of the Y.”

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