“Aside from matters of mental health and gender, what are some overlooked issues that the Sanggunian should address for this academic year?”
“I believe efforts should be taken to further develop socio-political awareness within the student body. This means more forums and immersions open to all Ateneans, more school-wide initiatives on various advocacies, as well as a stronger Sanggunian presence on issues beyond the Ateneo. It is not a time for apathy and the best platform to campaign against abuses on the underserved sectors of society would be the Sanggunian.”
Nadine Altavas
2 BS LM
“I’d like to see the Sanggunian explore and create conversations on the matter of owning up to our political responsibilities, particularly in light of the present administration. These duties, such as voting and engaging in rallies, are vital to our school’s identity. [Finding] novel ways to integrate these responsibilities with student life may serve as a catalyst for conversation as well. I would really like to see the Sanggunian collaborate with different organizations and try to break down the importance of rallies, voting, reading the news to a young Filipino citizen.”
Sean Carballo
2 BS HS
“The trash cans, or rather, proper segregation. I’ve been saying this for years but a lot of people don’t know where to throw their trash properly because of stuff like laminates or wood. A lot of BFA ID majors have proposed different designs for the trash cans. I’d wager a redesign would do a lot to help out. Trash cans should also be more consistent. In some places, there’s only the black and green, but in others it’s a full set.”
Nico Santana
3 BS ME
“What seems to be not so visible from my perspective is the relentless call for action in socio-political issues. There have been a lot of instances wherein Sanggunian released a statement about this and that and it’s good that we see what Sanggunian stands for. But, in terms of going outside campus and reaching out to oppressed sectors, I feel like there’s a lack in that department. Though it’s not just Sanggunian that’s accountable for things like student turnout for rallies and demonstrations, I wish there were ways to encourage students to reach out more to others.
We can’t compare activism in [the University of the Philippines] to what we have in the Ateneo, but at least socio-political awareness sana. At times, it seems like students are more invested in ADMU Freedom Wall than actual issues, and I hope Sanggunian can think of ways to turn that around. Maybe promote the demonstrations more to get a higher turnout.”
Frances Villaroz
2 AB COM
“I think it’s only recently that people are getting more concerned [about] the effects of climate change and environmental degradation. The existential fear that the physical world we live in today will cease to thrive is something that I feel most individuals share nowadays. The Sanggunian could address this by initiating efforts to encourage Ateneans to be more proactive in taking care of our immediate environment, and in the long run, be more aware of what effects the actions we take today have. There are several efforts that can be done in order to address whatever threats there are—and will be, to the environment—and the Atenean community can surely take a part in these if we choose to.”
Emerson Enriquez
3 AB COM
“The Sanggunian should address sexual misconduct cases more potently. I was part of a sexual misconduct case last school year that was supposedly taken to the higher-ups but until now I have not gotten any updates on it.”
Alisha Ples
2 AB Dip IR
“Reduction of the student body’s carbon footprint would be an ideal agenda to deal with this school year. Our relatively large consumption of electricity, fuel, paper and processed materials for academic and extracurricular purposes become detrimental in terms of sustainability and in an economic sense. They can strengthen efforts to encourage carpooling and recycling and engage with professors and experts to create or enforce a sustainability plan for the following years.”
Niel Jacob
5 BS BIO
“With the ever-growing amount of new students every year, I believe the lack of campus dormitories is an issue here. Lots of families strive for their kids to study in Ateneo but are limited by distance.”
Jason Tabilog
2 BS CH
“First thing that came to mind [is] physical health [with regard] to commuters since I know a lot of people who commute to school daily and we’re usually tired because of it. It’s not really a mental health issue, but I wonder how much more we could do if we weren’t so tired all the time, like tired and sweaty because of the annoying weather conditions. Plus, there’s also the factor of forgetting to eat or having no time to because of academics and rushing to school.”
Keith Adrian Santos
2 BS MS-CS
“I think Sanggunian should focus more on enhancing the social awareness and accountability of the students. This might sound harsh, seeing that most of Sanggunian’s platforms are leaning on the students’ overall well-being but we must also take into consideration the happening outside our campus halls.
Truth be told, Ateneans often are members of the upper or middle class, who, with the right opportunity and knowledge, would be the perfect [candidates] for improving the state of the country or even the world and having enough influence to actually act on that difference. Sanggunian could give them just that. We often pride ourselves with being men and women for other people but we continue to live in a bubble of contentment and borderline ignorance and it’s sad.”
Jan Chrys Meer
2 BS LM
“For me, I’d like to advocate for a better AISIS enlistment system. If possible, the slots for classes should be distributed evenly amongst batches, similar to the TALAB enlistment system. I believe that those in the latter batches are in a disadvantage in the current system because they tend to run out of slots in high-demand classes.”
Alex Barairo
2 AB-MA POS
“Personally, I think one issue that is overlooked by Sanggunian is the distinction of social classes in Ateneo. The elitist culture is rampant in our school given that a large chunk of the student body comes from the upper-middle class. This causes divisions among students and promotes [a] judgemental mentality.”
Angela Yu
2 BS LM
