Junior appointed YSU student trustee

The new trustee wants to make sure student interests are represented.

By HAROLD GWIN

VINDICATOR EDUCATION WRITER

YOUNGSTOWN — Stephen Foley, a junior from Richmond, Ohio, has been selected as the new student trustee at Youngstown State University.

The appointment was announced Friday by Gov. Ted Strickland.

Foley, a double major in political science and psychology, replaces Louise Popio, who graduated in the spring. His appointment is for a two-year term.

This is a very promising time for change at the university, Foley said, adding, “It’s something I want to be a part of.”

There are a lot of labor disputes at Youngstown State, and the students need representation in those situations, Foley said, adding that he will do his best to fill that need as a trustee.

There’s room for disagreement without issues developing into a dispute, and that’s the atmosphere that needs to be developed at YSU, he said. In a dispute, the needs of the students aren’t coming first, he said.

His constituency is the university at large, but student trustees are appointed with special reference to students, he said, explaining that it will be his job to look after their interests first, but without neglecting other campus issues.

He joins Erianne Raib of Liberty, a senior double major in communications and telecommunications, as a student trustee. Raib was appointed a year ago.

Foley, the son of Daniel and Dianna Foley of Richmond, is a graduate of Edison Local High School. He said he wasn’t political in high school and didn’t hold any elective office.

That changed after he enrolled at YSU.

He was elected as a student government representative for the College of Arts and Sciences for a one-year term last spring. That college is now the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences under a reorganization taking effect with the fall semester.

He said he applied for the student post on the board of trustees in April and was notified earlier this month that he had been selected.

Foley intends to go to law school after completing his undergraduate work at YSU and said politics may be in his future.

He is a University Scholar and involved in several extracurricular and academic activities. He is a member of Golden Key, Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society and the National Society of Collegiate Scholars. He is also active in Model United Nations and Model NATO.

gwin@vindy.com