Four days into the semester, President Steve Perez sat down with The Orion for his first interview with student media.
Perez, Chico State’s 13th president, shared high hopes for the semester. He is particularly excited to be living in the president’s mansion right on campus, with his wife and two dogs.
He is quite fond of living in a college town and mentioned The Banshee as one of the best Chico restaurants.
In the interview we hit on the following topics:
- Concerns about campus safety
- Perez’s past job history and becoming a university President after a scandal
- Campus safety improvements
- Proposed tuition increases
- The future of Chico State
- Recent California State University job turnover throughout the entire system
Prior to the interview The Orion reached out to students via Instagram asking what questions we should ask:
- Nolan Owens asked: “What are his takes on Greek life?”
- Daniel_rod91 asked “Why did you let go of the college of Ag Dean? His first action as president is to fire someone???????”
- Brenduhhh_0.0 asked: “What drew you to Chico State?”
- Wendy.daviiila asked: “What does wildcat pride mean to you?”
- From Masters student Arely Saldana: “What is his opinion on the proposed tuition increases?”
- This is from Butte College’s The Road Runner, a hard hitting question: “Are hot dogs a sandwich?”
Controversially, Perez decidedly answered “A hot dog is not a sandwich … it’s a hot dog.” He also mentioned his favorite drink is either a glass of bourbon or a Manhattan cocktail.
Perez noted he is still getting to know the students, and is eager to start building relationships.
“If you need something, if there is something that can make your experience better, let us know. That’s what we come to work for,” Perez said.
Alejandro Mejia Mejia and Molly Myers can be reached at [email protected].
