New USG Leaders Ready to Represent Students

August 19, 2022

Baruch College’s new Undergraduate Student Government (USG) leadership team—President Laiba Hussain (‘23) and Executive Vice President Osvaldo Garcia (’23)—stand ready to represent the student body for the new academic year.

Elected last May, Hussain and Garcia seek to “create a far more incredible experience at Baruch for everyone to thrive in” as students return to campus after two years of online and hybrid classes.

Laiba Hussain: ‘Creating a New Foundation for Student Life’

Passionate about the healthcare industry, Hussain is pursuing a Bachelor’s in Biological Sciences at the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences. Last summer, she worked as a supply chain intern at Pfizer and previously at a private health care clinic during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Hussain has been part of USG for more than three years: first as vice-chair of the arts committee helping to host events and initiatives on campus, then becoming chair of public opinion. Most recently, she served as USG’s vice president of student affairs.

Looking at the new academic year, Hussain says, “We aim to provide a safe and stress-free environment for every one of our students, regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation, disability, and so forth.

“I am a first-gen Pakistani American woman, born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. I hope to give back to the institution that has very much become a second home for me and make Baruch an even better place than it already is!”

Osvaldo Garcia: Advocate for Sustainability, Environmental Justice, and Racial Equity

Garcia is majoring in public affairs at the Marxe School of Public and International Affairs with a double minor in communications and journalism.

A passionate advocate for sustainability, environmental justice, and racial equity, Garcia has worked at multiple organizations in related fields. He interned at the Center for Court Innovation as part of its Youth Justice Board, served as a policy intern at PennEnvironment, and was a social impact intern at monday.com, an open platform software company.

He previously wrote for The Ticker’s “Opinions” section and was part of the first cohort of the Baruch Climate Scholars Program. While in the program, Garcia presented climate change issues to middle school STEP students, along with first-year students, at Baruch.

Since coming to Baruch, Garcia has helped fundraise money for both Baruch students and refugee communities abroad and co-organized a climate rally on campus.

About USG, Garcia said “our vision is to create a more equitable, diverse, inclusive, and sustainable Baruch College.”

About the USG

The Baruch Student Government is the official representative organization of both the day and evening undergraduate students. As the voice of the student body, USG aims to broaden the number of educational opportunities available to students, facilitate extracurricular activities, and improve quality of life on campus.

Throughout the academic year, the USG oversees a wide range of responsibilities, including representing undergraduates at faculty meetings, creating budgets for clubs, and chartering new clubs.

Learn more about the USG and how undergraduate students can be involved.

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