Candidate for Public Relations Coordinator
Anna Marie Gonzalez
Inver Hills Community College
Bio
My name is Anna Marie Gonzalez and I am currently a student in Inver Hills Community College. I intend to transfer to a University in Minnesota to pursue a degree in Aerospace Engineering in the future. Some of things I enjoy outside of Engineering are: playing with my dogs, discovering new restaurants, gaming, and traveling. I was born and raised until the age of 16 in Philippines. Coming to the United States as a teen helped me understand the importance of advocating for myself. With this, I would like to do the same for students in Minnesota by becoming a part of the LeadMN Cabinet for the upcoming Fall and Spring semester.
What degree or certificate program are you seeking?
I am currently taking a Mathematics Transfer Pathway at Inver Hills Community College. After this, I am hoping to pursue Aerospace Engineering in one of the Universities in Minnesota.
Please describe your previous student government or professional experience, and how it has prepared you for this position.
I am currently a Student senator at IHCC where I am a part of the Advocacy, Budget, and Outreach Committee. Due to my involvement, I earned some experience in advocating for student’s needs, allocating the student life resources, and implementing necessary changes on student bylaws. On the other hand, I am also the Co-President of our Engineering Club at IHCC where I am the Build Captain of the Rocketry team, and NASA GLEE team leader. I believe that the initiative and collaborative skills I gained from them helped prepare me for the Public Relations Coordinator position of the LeadMN cabinet.
Why are you running for this position?
After being a part of my college’s student senate and being involved in LeadMN this past year, I am inspired to take a step further in representing and advocating for students. I enjoy meeting new people with vast experiences and listening to their stories. And I believe that these stories can bring us all together to pin point changes we can and want to make for our current and future students. I want to make sure that their voices are heard and that they have access to the resources LeadMN can offer.
What challenges do you see facing Minnesota's community and technical college students?
Some challenges I see nowadays are the rising cost of resources and utilities like food, transportation, and textbooks. As we try and bring back the college spirit lost from the pandemic, issues such as food insecurity, lack of support in mental health, and financial burdens due to student loans still persists.