Hey everyone, it’s Claire, and I’m running for President!

Who I am:

I’m Claire Shigeno Murashima, a Marketing major with an interest in policy and a knack for all things creative. I’m half Japanese and half Dutch: I have grandparents who have gone to Calvin and other grandparents who witnessed the attack on Pearl Harbor from their rooftop. I was born and raised in Orange County, CA and went to high school in Chapel Hill, NC. Since college, I’ve also lived in Chicago and Washington, DC. As an enneagram 3, I’m driven to make things happen and bring lasting, positive change for Calvin after campus reopens. During my time at Calvin, I’ve held several roles in Student Senate, working as a student senator, vice president, and graphic designer. I also hold several other roles: I’m the founder and former president of Dance Marathon, I’m an orientation leader, a Dialogue juror, a dancer in dance guild, and cashier at Fresh Thyme. An entrepreneurial spirit, I started Dance Marathon in 2017, which has since raised over $55,000 for kids in need right here in Grand Rapids. I spent this past semester in Washington, DC, where I interned at the American Enterprise Institute. As a two-time veteran of Student Senate, I hope to continue the positive momentum of this year’s administration as well as invest in Calvin’s future leaders in the ways that leaders have invested in me.

Why I’m running:

losing my first election at age 10 was a real setback to my career, but i bounced back.

Holding office has always been something that has interested me, but I haven’t always had the savviness to actually be elected. I ran for spirit director in 4th grade, and lost. This was crushing, but I was only 10, so life moved on. I didn’t run for anything in middle school because my family moved to a new state before 8th grade. I finally held my first seat in student government as a senior in high school, where I planned events (including the Dance Marathon that my friend and I started). Being in Senate as a freshman and sophomore at Calvin gave me 22 automatic best friends, as well as an outlet in which I can turn Calvin’s shortcomings into positive changes that benefit everyone.

raising over $10k at Calvin’s first ever Dance Marathon!

My Platform

Over the past three years, I have done my best to serve our student body as a senator, vice president of external communications, director of freshman council, and graphic designer for Student Senate. I’ve worked on the fall break project, sat on the diversity mandate committee, dining hall improvement committee, facilities taskforce, faculty senate, and external communications team. I have also led freshman council to establish traditions that foster school spirit. Collectively, all of this has taught me that it is possible to make tangible changes for the student body, which makes me want to continue to advocate for my peers as student body president.

serving with the 99th senate team my freshman year.

I believe in having continuity, which is why I built my three goals on the already strong foundation of the Student Senate values. Our Student Senate values being results focused, student centered, and having a collaborative approach: my three goals summarize those values as working, for students, with you.

serving as a vice president on the 100th senate.

Part of my with you focus means I want to decrease the divide between students and the administration, as well as inform students of what Senate actually does. I know that campus may look and feel different in the fall, and a priority of my for students focus will be to find ways to boost morale and feel united after campus reopens. Senate’s best ideas have always come from the student body, and as president, I want to make myself available to the student body so that I can best serve our campus. Already, I’ve already started acting on my goal of working: I have been in contact with student org leaders as well as various students in order to gather ideas to pursue as your president. I am also looking at ways to collaborate more with student organizations so that there is more collaboration across campus. If you have an idea, please email me at csm24 and I would be happy to see how we can make it happen! I can’t wait for us to live the dream(a) with Murashima.

Endorsements:
Calvin Dance Marathon
Knight Investment Management Calvin University Model United Nations
Ellen Hekman
Doug Koopman
Edgar Aguilar

Links:
Instagram: @claireforpresident2020
TikTok: @claireforpresident
Facebook: Claire Murashima For President (@claireforprez)