Avery Barry Elected as New Student Trustee
On March 19, biology major Avery Barry was sworn as BSU’s new student representative on the Board of Trustees after being nominated by a vote of 50% by the Student Government Association on February 17. This comes after the position was vacated by the previous student trustee, Dhareen Jean-Michel, who stepped down to focus on their career earlier in the school year.
The Board of Trustees is the college’s governing body, responsible for high-profile matters such as long-term strategic planning, finances, college policy, capital projects, and more. The student trustee is on the general board, along with the committees for Finance & Operations, Student Success & Diversity, and Academic & Student Affairs.
Avery said she looks forward to making a positive and lasting impact in her role by working with other students to highlight their perspectives: “Student trustee is one of the most effective ways to do that because you can vote on major decisions for the school, and more importantly to me, you can take the students’ feedback and then bring that to the administration.”
Outside of the board, Avery is an active member of the BSU community as the Head RA of Woodward Hall and the President of the college’s National Residence Hall Honorary chapter. Additionally, she is a commissioner on the Massachusetts Commission on LGBTQ Youth, which helps inform the direction of State policy. Avery said, “In the future, I want to work in public policy and activism in regards to the environment, so [trustee] is kind of a perfect start because it’s a lot of the same tenets here—communicating with people, getting out, seeing what the community needs.”
If students want to share their perspective with Avery about BSU, she often can be found in the Dana Mohler-Faria Science and Mathematics Center, Woodward Hall, Rondileau Student Union in the Pride Center, or at Student Accessibility Services. Additionally, she can be reached by email at j1barry@student.bridgew.edu.
