Student Government Association is the official voice for students of Parkland and advocates for their peers & represent student interests when working with the administration and the broader Parkland community. In person voting will be held in the Student Union on Tuesday Sept 20 from 8am-6pm and in the College Center on Wednesday Sept 21 from 8am-6pm. Students can also vote online with from Wednesday Sept 14 at 8am until Wednesday Sept 21 at 6pm.
For more information about the 2022 fall SGA elections visit the Student Government Association webpage.
Fall 2022 Student Government Association Candidates
Vice President Candidates
Nikola Buis
My name is Nikola Buis. I am currently a second-year student at Parkland majoring in Political Science. I am looking forward to graduating in the Spring of 2023 as an Honors student. I’m an aspiring Law student who entered Parkland in the Summer of 2021. I wish to continue my education after Parkland by transferring to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and the University of Chicago. I am currently serving in the United State Air Force as a part of the Security Forces and have plans on training to join the Special Forces. I’m committed to serving 20+ years in the United Stated Armed Forces and am dedicated to international relations and civil/human rights work as a lawyer after graduating from school. In my spare time, I work alongside a handful of Parkland student organizations, community and national organizations that assist active duty servicemembers and veterans, and our local Catholic churches such as St. Matthew’s and St. Patrick’s. I am dedicated to my service for my school and my community.
My time on Parkland’s Student Government Association will be dedicated to student development and mentorship for Parkland current and prospective students. With my expertise and experiences within various schools, Parkland clubs, community and national organizations, and within the U.S. military, I will serve you well as your Student Vice President. My name is Nikola Buis and alongside with your Trustee, President, Treasurer, and Senators, I am dedicated to serving you. With my accomplishment as Parkland’s Officer of the Year, Honors Program Vice President of Leadership, and Scholars Group’s Vice President shows that I have been a successful leader in the past and will continue to be a successful leader in the future.
Rene Juarez-Cuevas
After a year at Parkland, I witnessed tremendous growth in the student body and the opportunities students have for success. I have been lucky enough to be involved in several growth areas and I have worked hard to help promote this growth. However, I am still motivated to bring more awareness to the twenty-plus student organizations on campus and help create more opportunities for student involvement. As Vice President of the Student Government Association, I will aid in planning for campus events, but more importantly, help lead the way for the student body to become more active and involved by promoting an open and accepting environment.
As President of the Cobra Investment Society, I have learned to be vocal and goal-oriented through leading meetings and helping found Cobra Capital, Parkland’s student-managed investment fund. While being a member and recently named President of Club Latino, I have seen the value of cultural diversity and understanding of different worldviews. Additionally, the Parkland Scholars Group, where I am also President, motivates me to do my part to engage students and encourage new students looking to be involved. Finally, I believe I have prepared myself by attending student government meetings regularly as a student for all of 2022 to understand better the state-wide need for student involvement.
The growth I have seen in my first year is only the beginning of my vision for the future. Earning the position of Vice President will let me give a voice to Parkland students and focus my attention, and that of the Student Government Association, on the issues that are truly important to the student body. As Vice President I will work to bring more on-campus activities to help engage the student body, as well as help, promote student initiatives school-wide.
Senator Candidates
Kian Barreiro
Good day to you all.
My name is Kian Barreiro, and I am running for student senator.
I started my Parkland College journey last year, during the fall semester as an international student who had just recently immigrated to the U.S from Cape Town, South Africa. I attended Parkland College with the goal of acquiring an Associate’s degree in engineering. With a year left at Parkland, I am now pursuing an Associate’s degree in science and I want to make and do the most at Parkland, while I am still here.
I am running for the position as a Senator because I would like to improve communication inside and outside of class, amongst other things. Most of my classes are quiet and there is little to no communication between instructors and students. After class it is the same, except we are in a larger space. I would love to change that because it will drastically improve student life at Parkland. I want to help students utilize all the tools and amenities that Parkland has to offer, whether that is tutoring or joining clubs and most importantly, I want to encourage students to make the most out of their Parkland College experience because two years goes by far too quickly.
I want to end this with a quote:
The effect you have on others is the most valuable currency there is – Jim Carrey.
Jaden Allen
Greetings my fellow Cobras! My name is Jaden Allen and I am honored to be petitioning for the position of senator in the Student Government Association. I am a first year and full-time student majoring in engineering. SGA has only recently been introduced to me, but I have grown eager in the time that I have had the pleasure to be blessed with to contribute to the advancement of the student government here at Parkland. Truthfully, I have never had the opportunity to explore the world of politics, besides attending various ISG meetings @ U of I and along with what we were all taught in textbooks and documentaries throughout our academic careers. Nevertheless, I am prepared to view the copious perspectives of the plentiful minds of the entire student body. Fun facts: I am originally from Chicago, IL, I am a first-generation student, and I’m also a fraternal twin. A past instructor of mine often instilled in his students that “conception begets change and a world without change is doomed”. I would frequently ask myself the question, why at times are we weary of change if it is essential for our development? After all the immense adversity I underwent during high school and up onto its completion, I concluded that necessary growth will inevitably come with growing pains. However, I also believe that certain growing pains unintentional receive an unbalanced amount of attention that extracts awareness away from other parts of the body or in this instance, the student body. As an African American male and the second youngest of over a dozen children, I know a thing or two regarding being overlooked. My promise to the Parkland student body is to never turn a blind eye or ear to the most prevalent concerns of another Cobra.
