On Friday the Student Senate appointed two new officers to serve for the remainder of the Spring Semester.

Kenyon Newhouse and Jason Barrios were elected as the new commissioner of marketing and commissioner of academics respectively, after being interviewed at Friday’s meeting.

Newhouse, also an Alta Vista Middle College student, said that while he doesn’t have personal social media for himself anymore, he has used platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat in the past and considers himself “fluent” in them.

“I don’t use Instagram or Facebook or anything like that because I feel like it’s a place where people go to show off how they want to be seen,” Newhouse said.

While he has had little experience with the design software necessary to the position such as Photoshop and Canva, Newhouse said that he is a quick learner and would be willing to take the time outside of student government to learn how to use those tools.

“When I took on commissioner of marketing last year I didn’t know how to do anything creative,” said Matt Esguerra, former commissioner of marketing and current vice president of external affairs. “So the first week I just sat down and figured out Photoshop and Canva, and with a little work ethic I think you can do the same.”

Jason Barrios’ background in academics stretches all the way across the street to McKinley Elementary school, where he is a student teacher for the school. Barrios said he has to explain to the children at the school that there is a college right across the street from them.

“One of my biggest goals is to advertise us to them and make them come here and see how we do stuff so they have aspirations to come to college,” he said.

Barrios also said he believes that being a representative of the school means voting for the decisions of the entire school, and that those decisions should be taken seriously and delicately.

“I like to get a lot of background information from a lot of trusted people before I make a big decision,” said Barrios. “I feel like that’s what I’ll do here cause that’s where it really counts.”

Barrios would like to help students who don’t know which field they want to go into or lack ambition by exposing them to a broad spectrum of careers.

“I think that most students don’t strive academically for success like for huge things as much as some people come here because at least most people that I talk to their just here because they’re on a two year bonus and they’re just taking classes and they don’t know what they’re doing and they don’t really care.”

“You could be literally almost anything within reason,” Barrios said. “To showcase and build that in people’s brains will allow them to have a bigger spectrum into what they want to do.”

Barrios was appointed by unanimous vote, while Newhouse was appointed with a vote of 5 for and 1 against.