DASG senate filled vacancies, amended bylaws and added intern lead positions to improve its 2026-27 academic year operations during its April 29 meeting in the Student Council Chambers.
DASG senate fills vacancies, facing bylaw ambiguities
The senate appointed Public Policy Liaison Gabe Manglona, 19, political science major, as the interim chair of administration. To meet quorum, Manglona appointed Madhumitha Balaji, 18, mechanical engineering major, to serve immediately as elections commissioner for the rest of spring 2026.
Balaji, intern for the Student Rights and Equity Committee, Finance Committee and Events Committee and internal elections candidate, should have gone through the full Midterm Internal Officer Election process, according to Article X, section 3, subsection D of the De Anza Student Government bylaws.
Manglona said the top-voted Elections Commissioner candidate besides Balaji will serve as the other elections commissioner immediately. Balaji ran a campaign for DASG president for the 2026-27 term.
The senate also appointed Chair of Marketing-elect Jesslyn Lukius, 18, economics major, as the interim chair of marketing, to fill Marketing Committee vacancies, where Social Media Officer Aisyah Faisal, 19, computer science major, is the only sitting member.
Program Liaison amendment seeks more balanced hiring process
Senators amended the Program Liaison selection process in DASG Bylaws Article V.
The proposal would reduce the number of interviewers from five to three, including meetings with one DASG representative, one Office of College Life staff member and one Equity Action Council representative.
The purpose of liaisons is to represent programs such as MESA or EOPS in the senate and be “the voice” that promotes “equity” according to the bylaws.
DASG Student Rights Officer Salvador Pedroza, 19, political science major, said the change was “more equitable and fair” since the previous selection process “heavily favored toward senior staff” with Equity Action Council representatives conducting three of the five interviews.
Pedroza said the changes were intended to address current structural inequities.
Events Committee introduces intern leadership roles
The senate created three intern lead positions, who will manage other student interns, by amending the Events Code.
Ryan Yi, 20, business economics major and chair of events, said the change addresses operational challenges while fostering leadership development.
Intern leads, without voting power, would take on responsibilities similar to senators, such as directing interns to set up events, managing volunteers on event days and updating senators on interns’ work.
“Our committee, within the first two quarters, harvest a lot of interns; it gets harder for senators to manage,” Yi said. “We want interns to not just be workers but also leaders in the future.”
