When I came to UA, I knew I was lucky to be here. I was able to enjoy making friends and winning a National Championship. I noticed a problem though. There weren’t a lot of students involved, and there was a lack of dialogue between organizations and students.

Long before I was standing in line at Starbucks or running into ten Hoor to make sure I was on time, I was struggling. From kindergarten to my senior year of high school, I was struggling. Grades were never easy for me to make. I was not the academic before college.

I was studying at a community college when something happened. Something clicked. I started to get it. I was learning. I was making the grades I always knew I could. I don’t know what it was but something changed. While my friends were having fun, I was studying. I decided to take it one step further. I moved up to a local university. The same things happened. I was learning. I was becoming an “academic.”

I knew that if I was going to get where I wanted to be in life, I was going to have to work for it. I was going to have to put in the effort. So that’s what I did. I knew that if I could make it to Alabama, I had finally conquered what had given me a hard time for so long.

I knew when I received my acceptance letter I had done it. I came to campus with a hard work ethic and determination on my side. I also knew that I wanted to be involved. I started with an organization called Al’s Pals, which helps kids overcome the same problems I faced. Next, I helped start an organization to foster dialogue on campus. But I knew I wanted to do more.

So I decided to run for Vice President of Academic Affairs. I knew that if I could overcome the challenges that I had faced before, I could help others. I have developed three ideas that can bring tangible benefits to students on our campus.

The first initiative I have developed is expanding the pass/fail program. This is an existing program that allows students to take electives on a pass or fail basis. I believe more students should be aware of this program.

Second, I want to employ more students. Currently, the University only employs around 4,000 out of the more than 30,000 students enrolled. I want to create seminar programs that would allow students with skills in computer programming, design, finance, social media and communication to teach these skills to students independently or representatives from organizations. This would allow students to take these skills back to their resume or organization. In turn, this allows organizations to project their message more efficiently, which will increase student involvement on campus.

Lastly, I want to fix the plus-minus system. In 2005, a study showed that 67 percent of students wanted to abolish the plus-minus system. My solution to this is to do away with the minus and keep the plus. This allows students who go above and beyond to be rewarded while not punishing those who still make an A. Other great schools in the SEC do not have the plus-minus system, why should we be at a disadvantage? Let’s allow our academics to speak for themselves, not a grading scale.

I feel that these initiatives can bring a tangible solution to students both in and out of the classroom.

Please remember to vote. Be involved, and let your voice be heard. I would appreciate your vote for Vice President of Academic Affairs.

Chris Simmons is a candidate for the position of Vice President of Academic Affairs.