Daniel Perkins is a junior from Birmingham, Alabama, majoring in accounting and finance. He is running unopposed for the SGA vice president of financial affairs (VPFA) position. 

Q: How did you originally get involved with SGA? Or if you’re not currently involved, what made you want to get involved?

A: “I actually got involved last year. I had a couple friends of mine and, you know what, I had always been into it, but I never considered it. A couple friends asked me, you know, ‘Why don’t you think about running for Senate?’ So I did, and I realized, you know, wow, what an impact we actually get to make on campus.”

Q: What made you want to run for this position?

A: “I had the privilege last year of being able to run for Senate and be able to see how much we’re able to do on campus. Throughout Senate, I was actually able to meet Hunter Scott. He’s the current VPFA, and after talking to him this past year about all of the responsibilities that go into VPFA, I realized that that’s exactly what I want to do, and I’d be good at it.”

Q: What makes you the best choice for this office?

A: “Given my experience with SGA over the past year, being able to see the legislative process, being able to work with Hunter Scott, being able to see what we do, has kind of given me an idea of A: the correct procedure and going about running for the position, and as well as my background in finance and accounting has also given me an opportunity to see from the finance side of things.”

Q: What’s the biggest problem you see on campus?

A: “I would say that the biggest problem that I’ve seen so far is the lack of outreach to student organizations. You know, we have over 600 student organizations, but less than a quarter of them really receive funding from the University, and I find that is just a problem.” 

Q: What do you hope to change?

A: “With that, I’d like to increase transparency for student organizations. I think a lot of the issues come from the complexity in applying for funds, so something I’d like to see is, for me, to have more of a relationship with these student organizations to kind of show them, you know, the correct procedure in applying for funds and really getting the most out of this university.”

Q: What’s one last thing you want voters to know about you?

A: “I’d like voters to know that, given my experience with SGA, given my background in the finance industry, along with my desire to really make a change in this university, I think I’ll make a big difference for years to come as VPFA.”