Grant Groene

Michael Burns, senior in agricultural education, and Grant Groene, junior in agronomy, are announcing their candidacy for student body president and vice president.
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Michael Burns, senior in agricultural education, and Grant Groene, senior in agronomy, filed to run for president and vice president Wednesday.
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Groene has served as president of Delta Chi and has worked on Interfraternity Council.

"Our experience is something Grant and I bring to the table," Burns said."We have the experience to connect to the university, the Board of Regents and to state legislators."

Burns and Groene are campaigning on a four-issue platform that includes a contracted tuition rate, a restructured service fee, online teacher evaluations and graduate student teacher workshops.
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Burns and Groene would also look at how to apply the contracted tuition rate to current students.
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"It would provide students a chance to log on and evaluate a class or to see if a class will fit their needs or if they'll like the professor," Groene said.

This system would only be available to students and would not replace teacher evaluations completed at the end of a course for use by department heads and teachers themselves.

The graduate student teacher workshops Burns and Groene propose would introduce new teaching methods and give graduate teaching assistants the opportunity to enhance their classroom skills.The workshops, something graduate students have wanted for a while, would benefit undergraduate students as well.

"The better teachers they have, the more they'll get out of the class," Groene said."It's a win-win situation for graduate and undergraduate students."

Burns and Groene said their leadership abilities and experience are what set them apart from other candidates.
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"Grant and I believe we are the candidates that can continue the strong tradition of leadership that presidents and vice presidents have brought in the past," Burns said.

Burns, Groene prepare for presidency
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It's slowly starting to sink in for Michael Burns and Grant Groene.
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"I'm just kind of enjoying a few days off," Groene said."It hasn't (sunk in) quite yet."

Burns, senior in agricultural education, and Groene, senior in agronomy, are the first presidential pairing from the College of Agriculture since Jake Worcester, an agriculture economics major, won the presidency in 2000.
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"Grant and I are both lucky to be in a college that supports us in any endeavor.

"The College of Agriculture is very networked.Our deans really care about the students."

Groene said the different majors past presidents and vice presidents have had demonstrates the amount of diversity at K-State.
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The duo also differs from past presidential pairs in that Burns is not a member of the greek system while Groene is a member of Delta Chi fraternity.
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"It's going to allow Michael and I to reach out to different sides of campus," Groene said.
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The greek system provides networking opportunities, Groene said, but achievement ultimately depends on individual efforts.

While bridging the gap between greeks and non-greeks, the pair has established a working timeline for implementing their platform issues.

Online teacher evaluations through the Wildcat Information Network will be up and running for next semester, Groene said.

"That'll probably be our easiest issue to tackle," he said.
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Burns and Groene said they hope the workshops for graduate teaching assistants will begin in spring 2006.
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"It's a resource the dean of the grad council is excited about," Groene said.
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Groene said the timetable for this issue will depend on the amount of support the proposal receives, but that the two have talked with several department deans who like the idea.
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"I want to make a difference here," Groene said.

Student body president Michael Burns stores files in his desk Wednesday afternoon as vice president Grant Groene takes a break from cleaning his own desk.
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Student Body President and Vice President Michael Burns and Grant Groene, respectively, have accomplished all four prongs of their platform.
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"Grant and I set out to give students the ability to predict what it would cost to get them higher education," Burns said."Students won't pay the same per credit hour for four years, but they will have the ability to predict."

For the prong of their second platform, Burns and Groene announced the elimination of transcript, graduation and Career and Employment Services fees at Feb. 3's Senate meeting.
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The evaluations will be on www.win.ksu.edu by April 10, Groene said.

"It took a little while longer than we had hoped for," Groene said.
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"The following summer we went to another officer group for FFA, and over the next year-and-a-half we saw each other on a regular basis," said Groene, who is from Winfield, Kan. "We became great friends and were elected state officers in FFA prior to our freshman year of college."
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"It was an easy fit to consider Grant, since he has got all of those qualities."
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While Groene said he served as president and rush chair of Delta Chi fraternity, this was his first year in student government.

"At first - to be honest - it was a little overwhelming," Groene said."But the more I got to work with people, they were really supportive.

"It wasn't that difficult, but I think it could have been if I didn't have such a strong support structure around me."

Burns and Groene announced their bid for the presidency on Feb. 10, 2005.
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Burns and Groene were sworn into office on April 14, 2005, and Moore was elected as Senate chair on April 21, 2005.
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"I think the relationship the three of us (Moore, Groene and Burns) have had is what K-State is all about - it's working together to make this university a better place."
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Moore said Burns and Groene have served as leaders for students and their rights.
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Bob Krause, vice president for institutional advancement, said Burns and Groene were one of the best presidential pairs in recent times.
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"Grant and Michael have really accomplished all the goals they set out to," Krause said.
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Both Burns and Groene have K-State on their minds for the future.
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Groene said he will graduate in December with a degree in agronomy and also is looking to attend graduate school at K-State.

"In a way, it's kind of bittersweet, but we set out to get everything done," Groene said.

President and vice president candidates Michael Burns and Grant Groene roomed together their freshman year at K-State after working together during high school.
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"We've been best friends ever since then," Groene, senior in agronomy, said.

Burns, from Jetmore, Kan., and Groene, from Winfield, Kan., served as district officers together in high school and then as state officers for Kansas their first year as Wildcats.
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After his term as an FFA state officer, Groene joined Delta Chi fraternity, where he served as the alumni relations and rush chairs and then as president.
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Groene, however, has global goals.

"I want to go into plant genetics and plant breeding," he said.
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"Grant and I are not afraid to bring up the issues K-State students care about," Burns said."We will go to university administration to collect information and see if there's something we can change."

Those changes will be based on the duo's four-pillar platform of a contracted tuition rate, a restructured service fee, graduate teaching assistant workshops and online teacher evaluations.

With a formal endorsement from primary election opponents Bill Schmit and Jack Holtzen, Burns and Groene will continue to take their message to students until Tuesday and Wednesday's general election.