ASUWT plans opportunities for student involvement

The Ledger spoke with student government leaders about their plans to get students involved in legislation.

By Ella Walken

On Oct. 20, the Associated Students of University of Washington Tacoma (ASUWT) hosted their first legislative town hall meeting of the 2026-2027 school year. The Ledger spoke with Heba Qatrani, ASUWT Director of Legislative Affairs, about her plans for the upcoming year and student involvement. 

“There are so many ways that you can get involved through our subcommittees,” Qatrani said. “These are resume building opportunities. These are opportunities to be involved in how your local politicians are affecting your life.” 

Some of these committees include the field committee and policy and research committee. The field committee will be a great way for you to gain experience in advocacy and organizing. Qatrani explained that the field committee is an opportunity for students who aspire to work in politics to get real life experience. 

The policy and research subcommittee will have a policy researcher, a policy analyst and a fiscal analyst. This position would be ideal for students who have any interest in doing any type of research in the future. Qatrani explained that these skills are transferable to any type of career path” and is also “a way for you to directly support our legislative advocacy. 

These committees will help gather information for the upcoming Huskies on the Hill lobby day and inform the lobbyists who will be meeting with state officials of the needs and demands of UW Tacoma students. 

Qatrani shared that another way for students to get involved is at the upcoming Washington Student Association general assembly which will be hosted at UW Tacoma on Nov. 14 and 15. “Anybody can sign up,” Qatrani said. The sign-up link can be found at the WSA Instagram page. 

Qatrani stated that the opportunity to work in legislation as a student provides much more than a stacked resume and work experience. It is also personally fulfilling and allows students to grow closer to their community.  

“I’ve gotten to work with cultural interest groups that represent my community,” she said. “It’s been really enriching for me.” 

The Ledger also briefly spoke with ASUWT President Terell Stalworth about ASUWT’s main focus for the year and how the organization plans to get students involved.  

Terell explained that “It’s just been a matter of, like, how do we get students to actually show up and come to these things? 

In addition to the core concerns of food and housing, parking is a major concern for Stalworth’s administration. He believes that parking difficulties at UW Tacoma directly negatively impact the ability of students to show up for campus involvement outside of classes.  

“When students have a lack of parking, meaning they feel they need to pay extra, what ends up happening is… they leave campus super early… Students are leaving campus early because they can’t afford parking. That’s an issue.” Stalworth said. 

Stalworth told The Ledger that he and his team are working with city officials to come to a solution that helps students have greater access to parking so they can stay on campus and be more involved in their campus community. 

Qatrani emphasized how important it is for students to be involved in local elections. As for the upcoming midterms, Qatrani said that “young people need to be turning out to vote. Their legislators need to know that we’re watching them.” 

Stalworth stressed just how important it is for students to have an outlet to get involved politically and express their needs. “These students have all this energy. You want to use it efficiently. You don’t want it to be wasted on other things. We want to actually enact change where we can.”