Candidate Profile

Almoatasim (Al) Shahbain

(He/Him)

At the College of DuPage (COD), I presided over organizations like the Student Veterans Association (SVA) and the UNICEF Chapter, and I founded The Elegant Rooms of Poetry and Wisdom. I’m proficient in six major Arabic dialects and currently serve in the Illinois Army National Guard. I received my associates of criminal justice and homeland security certificates from COD, both with high honors. As the president of SVA at COD, I was responsible for drafting a policy letter in accordance with federal and state laws to accommodate the needs of military service students and pushed that letter to the college chains of command. I also participated in philosophy and Model UN. Currently, I serve the American Model United Nations International (AMUN) as committee chair, presiding over rules and regulations, facilitating debates, and advising representatives on rule usage in rooms with upwards of 200 college student ambassadors. In 2023, I was selected to attend the European Model UN in the Netherlands and during the trip visited the European Parliament and NATO headquarters and spoke to military officers and civil diplomats. In the summer of 2023, I was selected for one of the country’s most competitive internships with the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C. and I was the only community college student in my internship cohort. At UIUC, I’m majoring in political science, and I’m pursuing a future career in the foreign service. With a diverse background, many experiences, and successful leadership in improving student organizations and national chapters, I’m running for a student representative office solely out of personal obligation. I believe that I’ve a duty to leverage my background and experiences to serve our community and the student bodies at UIUC. As for my platform and what I plan to do, I’ve encountered a few things as an incoming student that I believe are problematic, and I plan to use my position to advocate for these issues and make students' lives easier. One of the issues I encountered is the housing options and coordination. As an incoming student, I struggled to find adequate information and was able to secure a smooth transition only through private contacts. Another thing is our student organizations website, which seems to lack the efficiency of communication and connectedness as well as information in describing the organizations and their officers. I plan on using my position to improve these issues that I’ve seen so far. In addition, my overall interest is reaching out to every organization and student group on campus to initiate better communication amongst them and the schools; and as their student representative it will be my priority to advocate for their issues. Everything I’ve done in my life has been for the sake of public service and I intend on doing everything I’ve stated previously solely out of passion for that same objective. Should I be elected for this position, it would be my honor to serve.