Welcome Back!
A Message from our A.S. President and Executive Director
Dear A.S. Family,
Welcome to the fall semester! We are so excited for all that is to come in this new and exciting school year.
Our executive officers are proud to announce this year’s vision and tagline: Future Forward, Passion to Lead, Courage to Care. As students continue to adjust to life during the pandemic, this year will be an important marker in building the culture of A.S. for years to come. It takes passion to lead during this time because of our social climate and the events happening in our world. It also takes an individual to have the courage to care about the things happening within their community. Bringing this passion and courage to our work helps us improve student lives each day. You are all so appreciated and we thank you for your continued dedication and support of A.S.’ mission and work.
Shawki and Christina
The ARC is Complete!
The ARC expansion and renovation project is now complete!
The ARC renovation project, which started in the fall of 2021, opened right in time for the new school year. The new space now includes six multi-use courts, an expanded Olympic lifting zone, an office for Aztec Adventures and a meeting room.
The multi-use courts will play a pivotal part in intramural sports and will also be available to drop-in and play basketball, futsal, volleyball and badminton. Sports equipment is available to borrow at the ARC front desk.
After seeing the high demand for the Olympic Lifting Zone when the expanded section of the ARC opened, our ARC team pivoted from adding a seventh multi-use court to more lifting space and the addition of Olympic Lifting North. This new area has 12 squat racks, two cable machines, a cable tower and much more.
A huge thank you to our Aztec Recreation team who has worked tirelessly to make the recreation, fitness and wellness needs of SDSU students a priority on our campus for years to come!
Food Pantry Fall 2022 Hours
The A.S. Food Pantry is open for the school year!
The A.S. Food Pantry provides nutritious food, food program referral services and CalFresh resources for SDSU students experiencing food insecurity.
The A.S. Food Pantry is located on the second floor landing of the Aztec Student Union.
Services are available:
Mondays from 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
Wednesdays from 12-4 p.m.
Thursdays from 1-6 p.m.
No reservation or registration is required but please bring your own reusable bag!
SDSU Safe App
Safety is a top priority on campus.
To help students, faculty and staff stay safe, the university has rolled out the SDSU Safe app, a new, free app designed to address and promote personal safety both on and off campus.
Some of SDSU Safe’s features include:
Friend Walk:
Send your location in real time to a friend so they can watch you as you walk to your destination. They’ll watch to make sure you get to your destination safely and can trigger a call to emergency services if necessary.
Social Escape:
The Social Escape feature allows you to get out of a tough social situation by calling you and giving you an excuse to leave.
Report a Tip:
You can now report a campus incident in one, convenient place. Report a tip to SDSU Police (anonymous option available), Inclusive SDSU, Title IX or to SDSU Discrimination/Harrassmnet/Retaliation Administrators.
I’m OK!:
SDSU Safe’s “I’m OK!” feature sends your location and a message indicating that you’re okay to a recipient of your choosing. You can use this button in an emergency situation to notify your recipient that you’re okay.
SDSU Safe is available for Apple and Android users. Download it now!
2 Truths and a Lie
How well do you know our A.S. full-time employees? Find the lie out of their three statements!
Ryan DeLong, Viejas Arena Associate Director of Operations:
- I was born and raised in Kentucky until I was 8 years old.
- I have sisters that are twins that are 14 months younger than me and my wife Kim has brothers that are twins and are 13 months younger than her.
- I once threw out the first pitch at a Padres vs. Giants game.
Sara Sanders, SDSU Children’s Center Assistant Director:
- I have had dinner and drinks in the Russian embassy.
- I swam in the Aegean Sea.
- Growing up in Minnesota, I spent years participating in 4H livestock competitions at the Minnesota State Fair.
Adina Mroz Flint, Aztec Student Union Events Planner:
- I was invited to and attended Manny Machado's 30th birthday party this year — my husband works for the Padres and knows the players pretty well.
- My cousin and I were background actors called “walkers” in “The Walking Dead” TV show.
- When I was 4, I accidentally played with a beehive in my front yard and got stung 64 times. My mom said I was basically covered head-to-toe with bees when she found me.
Ahkeel Whitehead, Director of Adapted Athletics:
- In 2020, I went to the Paralympic Games in Tokyo 2020, finishing 12th in the 100m and 11th in the long jump for the T/37 classification.
- In 2017, I visited Beijing, China and did a 2 mile run on the Great Wall.
- In 2015, I broke the American records in the 100m, 200m, and 400m for the T/37 classification.
Omar Sanchez, Payroll Technician
- I have been to 14 U.S. states.
- I hate spicy food.
- I cut my own hair.
Ryan DeLong:
The lie is that I threw out the first pitch at a Padres vs. Giants game. Although it is a lie, I have always loved the game of baseball and to this day playing Major League Baseball has always been a dream of mine. I have come to grips with the reality that it most likely won't come true (still keeping the door open) but I am even more excited to share the love of the game with my 4-year-old son, Hayden!
Sara Sanders:
True: My mother-in-law was the president of the League of Cities and I had the opportunity to join her for dinner in Washington D.C. at the Russian Embassy. I was also blessed to have the opportunity to swim in the Aegean Sea during my trip to Greece last year.
The lie: I did grow up on a farm in Minnesota; however, I was never in 4H and none of our animals entered contests for the fair.
Adina Mroz Flint:
The lie: I was never a background actress in “The Walking Dead”! That show freaked me out.
Ahkeel Whitehead:
The lie: In 2016, I went to the Paralympic Games and did those things, not in 2020! Coach Isaac Jean Paul went to the 2020 Games!
Omar Sanchez:
The lie: I hate spicy food. Big Lie! I could never hate spicy food, in fact, if the food is not spicy I’ll add a bit of hot sauce to bring out the flavor depending on the dish of course…And yes, I cut my own hair!
15 Questions
Olivia Li
- What is your name and title?
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Olivia Li, Marketing and Communications Specialist
- Which A.S. department do you work in?
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Government Affairs. I assist with a lot of A.S.’ marketing efforts including running A.S.’ social media accounts and I also help put this newsletter together. :)
- How long have you worked for A.S.?
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I worked for A.S. for 2.5 years as a student and just over 1 year full time!
- What do you like most about working for A.S.?
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Working at A.S. has been really special for me because it’s been a constant throughout different stages of my life. But I love the people here more than anything!
- What was the last movie you saw? Thumbs up or thumbs down?
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"Crazy, Stupid, Love." I just saw it for the first time! Thumbs up.
- What is your favorite dessert?
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Crepes with Nutella and strawberries. There is no better combo!
- Do you prefer pens or pencils?
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I really never write with pencils anymore. My favorite pens are the Pilot G-2 pens with a 0.38 tip. I’ve been using them for years and don’t use anything else.
- Would you rather be a superhero or the world’s best chef?
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World’s best chef. I spend way too much money eating out and I absolutely love good food. I can’t cook very well myself though!
- There is a free, round-trip shuttle to Mars. The catch: it will take one year of your life to go, visit, and come back. Are you in?
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Probably not. I love my life on Earth too much! And I get claustrophobic.
- What is your favorite breakfast food?
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I’m always down for a good acai bowl in the mornings but I also love an omelet with mushrooms, onions, cheese and avocado.
- “Most people don’t know that I like to…
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…watch sports, like all the time. I have an entire Google Calendar to keep track of the schedules for the nine sports teams that I keep up with.”
- When you visit the Zoo, which animal do you make sure you see?
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Giraffes. There’s something so majestic about them that makes them mesmerizing.
- What does your perfect burger have on it?
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Lots of lettuce, onions, mushrooms and maybe some garlic aioli.
- Would you rather speak all languages or be able to talk with animals?
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I would rather speak all languages. In my free time, I volunteer with an organization that works with international students and I’d love to speak to students in their native language. I also never really got to know some of my grandparents because I only speak English, so I would have loved to be able to converse with them.
- What is one of your favorite things to do on the SDSU campus?
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I don’t get to much anymore, but as a student I loved spending time at the Storm Hall Terrace or at the turtle pond.
Entertainment
VIEJAS ARENA &
CAL COAST CREDIT UNION
OPEN AIR THEATRE
NEW VENUE: Viejas Arena
Calendar
SEPTEMBER 2022
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