This week I talked to the AUSA Presidential Assistant, Rock Choi (sophomore, exercise science) to learn more about why he applied, what responsibilities his position entails, and future goals he has.
What attracted you to apply for AUSA? Why does it interest you?
It’s a combination of multiple things. Last year’s AUSA President Dongchan came up to me and said, “Rock, I think you’ll do really well in AUSA, and I know you’re interested in leadership.” And I am interested in leadership because I really enjoy it, and serving other people is what I live for and what I feel like I’ve been called to do. It really fulfills me and it feels like I’m doing God’s work by helping people through leadership, and representing others as best I can.
What is your philosophy on leadership? Are there any ideals you hold?
As someone who is holding a leadership position among peers, I think it’s very important to make a distinction between friends and partners in leadership. It’s hard to find that balance, but once you get that set, especially in a student leadership role, you can do so many other things while keeping your friends really close. Leadership isn’t all about logistics, and it’s also not all about creativity—you can combine those both. Someone like me—I’m not good at creativity, I’m definitely more the logistics type—so finding people who compliment you is also really important. Also, I think you have to keep in mind that leadership is never going to be easy from the jump. You’re put in a position where you’re in service to others, but that doesn’t make you better than anyone else and it doesn’t give you more clout. If you’re doing it for clout, then you’ll fail because you’re doing it for the wrong reasons. The reason why you do leadership is because you want to serve others.
What prominent roles and responsibilities do you hold as Presidential Assistant?
I help out with the Senate, so I work directly under the Executive Vice President, Andrew Rapette (Senior, Information Systems), and do small logistic tasks such as taking attendance and making sure everything’s in order. I also lead the Finance Committee for the Senate; for example, clubs securing grants or division of money. Although the EVP has the ultimate say, a couple of other senators and I kind of deal with it. Basically, that’s the bulk of my job in addition to going to events and helping out wherever I can, because as part of AUSA, it’s my duty to make sure that I show up at every AUSA event.
What do you enjoy the most about being in the Student Association?
I think just meeting new people, because there are so many positive people who want to do a lot of things. Additionally, making new friends and connections like saying hi to someone while walking to class has definitely allowed me to broaden my circle.
What is the most challenging aspect of your position?
The most challenging aspect for me is sometimes feeling like my position is less important—which doesn’t mean anything—but just the fact that it doesn’t have a fancy title can make me feel like, “Oh, well, I’m not that important, so I don’t have to go.” I think it’s just about breaking that barrier and saying “No, I’m still a part of AUSA, I’m still an officer.” So I think I should do my best—and no matter how small my role, no matter how easy my role may seem, it’s about constantly doing more than what I’m asked and doing the best I can, despite my role seeming unimportant.
What are some of your goals and priorities for the 2022-2023 school year?
My goals overall for AUSA is to do a little more than just events. During my freshman year all I’ve seen AUSA do was put on events which were obviously really good, but I want us to go further. For example, we could do a little more with administration, or connect with more departments of the school and just put on a wider variety of things. Letting the school as an entirety know what the students want and strive for—that’s pretty much my goal. It’s very broad, but I think it’s achievable.
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of Andrews University. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, Andrews University or the Seventh-day Adventist church.