Sitting in the sophomore deck, one notices a plethora of things. Teachers wafting in and out of classrooms, students chatting on their way to lunch- normal day-to-day school activity. However today, as I sat on a cold blue bench, I heard laughter in the distance. The source? Amol Dhaliwal cracking a joke. Not an uncommon site amongst the junior who constantly has a smile on his face and manages to light up a whole room with just a few words. His newest venture? Running for student class president. And just as impressive: He won. I sat down with him to get his thoughts on his latest win.

Q: What does being a president mean to you?

A: It means being a great student leader and what that really means is being a good listener… Not so much [about] pressing my ideas but really all the students’ ideas. So I shouldn’t advocate for selfish needs but rather the needs of the student body.

Q: What are some ideas you have to shake up the 2015-2016 school year?

A: Well, as I promised in my speech, I’d really just like to get some reform in student parking. It’s a growing problem that students face every year and nothing seems to get done about it… The way the current system is run, it’s possible for seniors to park in the baseball lot. So my goal next year is, by some compromise with the administration, to not let any seniors park in the baseball lot. Now I’m not just focusing on seniors but juniors and sophomores as well; they have their own kind of gripes… really just trying to get an inventory from everyone.

Q: Will speaking in convo everyday be a little nerve racking to you?

A: Surprisingly, no. I love attention. I feed off attention. I’ve been waiting for this day since ninth grade. I’ve always wanted to be up there, so I’m really looking forward to it.

Q: What was the first thing you did when you found out that you were Berkeley’s new class president?

A: I texted my mom… and then I shook Lance’s and Colton’s hands.

February is a month of new beginnings, and this year we’re kicking off 2015 with Amol Dhaliwal as student forum president. We’re excited to see what he has in store for the 2015-2016 school year.