Alexander Walters

History

College of Arts and Sciences

Class of 2028

As far as learning experiences at Cornell are concerned, my year as the LGBTQIA+ Students Representative on Assembly has to be the most formative of them; in no lecture, seminar, NME or job training have I felt so welcomed and immersed in the processes of affecting substantive change. Knowing that my voice and my effort has the ability to change students’ experiences is genuinely awesome. On top of that, exercising that ability from the position of advocating for my community has been incredibly fulfilling. As a member of the Finance Committee, I was proud to advocate on behalf of queer and gender support organizations to secure consistent funding in a budget cycle that left many organizations less lucky. Co-authoring a condemnation of Cornell’s settlement with the Trump administration, a deal that encourages anti-diversity practices and violates our founding doctrine of “any person, any study” was a high point of my entire time in college. With more time on Assembly, I’d really like to continue voicing the concerns of my community, from safeguarding students’ rights to demonstrate on campus to ensuring we’re staying aligned with our educational and philosophical commitments.