Hudson Valley native bridges town-gown gap in new position

On Jimmy Kelly’s ’09 walls, posters of Martin Luther King Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi remind him of the focus upon community and collaboration that he has tried to bring to each of his positions within the Vassar Student Association (VSA).

Kelly, Vassar’s first Vice President for Activites, is entering his third year in campus government and his first on the executive board. He became interested in student government at Vassar when he attended a particularly heated VSA meeting during his freshman year.

“I believe a lot in tolerance and diversity, so when I saw there were issues...I decided I had to get involved,” said Kelly. Since then, he has focused on bringing his beliefs into fruition within the student government.

Kelly grew up in nearby Pleasant Valley and has always been interested in bridging the gap between the campus and the surrounding community. “I would like to take the clubs that normally stay within the gates out into the town and give them the resources to do it,” said Kelly as he outlined his goals for the year.

Kelly wants to encourage student organizations to collaborate with one another. There are 121 clubs and organizations on campus, all of which need funding and oversight; collaborations would not only save time and money but would also increase the pool of knowledge available to these clubs.

“We want to prevent organizations from reinventing the wheel every time they create an event,” he said. In order to facilitate teamwork between organizations, a collaboration fund has been created. It is intended for three or more organizations working together on an event and is separate from other allotted budgets.

Kelly brings to the Vice President of Activities position a desire to establish a personal relationship with each individual club. In working toward this goal, he keeps open office hours, exchanges numerous e-mails with club leaders, and encourages anyone to talk to him informally.

“I want to be not only a leader, but a friend…without letting that affect my own ethical code of conduct,” Kelly said.

Kelly recognizes that he may face many dilemmas in his new position, including funding and space limitations, that could be affected by friendships. “I have to draw a line, because my personal relationships with organization leaders cannot make an impact on my decisions.”

“I think that anyone who is in the position of making important decisions has to grapple with the effects and side-effects of his decision,” Kelly said. Despite these issues, he is confident that he is among good company and looks to his own ethical compass to guide his actions during this coming year.