Wednesday, June 5, 1996
With hopes of healing divisions within the Pilipino campus
community, Roselma Samala has earned the presidency of Samahang
Pilipino.
"There is a lot of disunity among the Pilipino organizations
on-campus," said Samala, a fourth-year sociology student. "One of
my plans is to try to bring together all Pilipino campus
organizations and make them equal."
In order to bridge these divisions, Samala plans to create a
banyanihan, which means "community."
Because Samahang is the officially recognized representative of
the UCLA Pilipino community, Samala hopes that this collection of
groups will allow members of other organizations a means to be
heard.
"We are not trying to get people back (into Samahang)," Samala
said. "We are supposed to represent the Pilipino community on
campus."
Samala maintains that establishing communication is one of the
key ways to achieve unity.
"The way I see it is making that one-on-one connection with
them," Samala said. "Some groups, we have lost contact with.
"Basically, I see it as one-on-one communication and telling
them we want to start making an effort," she added.
And helping her achieve these goals is a board new to these
positions.
"This year, none of us have ever been board members," Samala
said. "I see a lot of potential on this board and a lot of
willingness to work with everyone."
More profiles:
Josh Geffon, Jewish Student Union
Kandea Mosley, African Student Union
Benjamin Wang, Muslim Students Association
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