Giving a voice to every student

Wakely Wolf is running with Kannezcia Sanamane on his ticket for ASG president.

Wolf is currently attending Mt. Hood to earn an associate’s degree in science, and intends to transfer to PSU. After that, he said he would “love to transfer to a research position at OHSU” where he could be involved in epidemiology.

“I really believe we only have one life, and part of my Buddhist background is really making sure we can do the most with it, so for me, I’d like to work with (battling) diseases for impoverished nations.”

Wolf said he’s running for ASG president because he feels like “there’s a voice that’s not being heard here on campus; there are a lot of different types of students, and I don’t believe that all of their needs are being met,” he said.

A father, Wolf said that he represents a variety of types of students. “Having different backgrounds, being low-income, being a parent, having an immigrant family, means those are things where I can relate with other students” who encounter some of the same circumstances, he said.

Wolf said that “we really need to come together” as a community, and that the college needs to “find more sponsors,” as well.

“As we can see, the funding (for programs and students clubs) is just not there,” he said. “A lot of that has been the (Oregon state) government cutting back” college funding, he said. But he also noted that “ASG (Associated Student Government) gets $1.2 million… (you) wonder, ‘Well, where does the money go, and how is it being used?’ I think there’s a demand for a leadership position here.”

Wolf said he sees another problem at MHCC that isn’t budget-related: “(A) lot of students may be a little more afraid to come to school, being from immigrant families, especially after Trump was elected, so seeing that there’s all these different backgrounds… their needs need to be met” along with their voices being heard, he said. “So, I hope I can represent that.”

He also said he would like to reform the college’s Head Start program, run in a federally backed facility on campus that “promotes school readiness of children under five from low-income families,” according to its website.

Wolf said that while “it’s a great program…I’d like to see it (be) more beneficial (to MHCC) students.” With respect to “daycare with the Head Start program, I know that a lot of the parents here, they’re just not getting their needs met. The program isn’t large enough, I know there’s definitely a wait list, and there’s just other problems.”

Student clubs and campus organizations are funded by Student Activity Fees, a source of revenue separate from tuitionn paid for classes. Funds raised by the fees are disbursed by the Student Finance Council, and support a wide variety of student groups.

“I wish there was more concern about ASG,” said Wolf. “I wish the clubs and organizations on campus were stronger. There’s definitely a lack of that, and we can see it all over, even on Facebook you see a lot of inactive clubs, and you’re wondering, ‘Well, what happened to these people? Why aren’t these clubs still going?”

He said that as ASG president he would plan on “partnering up with some of the partners we’ve had in the past, along with creating new sponsors for our school” to bring in more funding. He would “plan on going to these board meetings, and showing our community that there is a need for (better distribution of funds), because it might be something that the community doesn’t realize,” he said. “It’s not just about supporting the students, it’s about helping them support their families that they have.”

To read Wolf’s official Declaration of Candidacy, click here.