The Associated Student Government conducted interviews and appointed a commissioner of international student affairs at its meeting Friday, stressing the importance of diversity on campus. 

Only two people, President Alexandra Montes De Oca and Student Trustee Kenny Igbechi, held positions on the senate at the beginning of this semester.

Bruce Wang, a 27-year-old philosophy major from China, was unanimously appointed as the commissioner of international student affairs.

“You will make a good contribution to the board,” De Oca said to Wang. 

Wang said as commissioner he would like to focus on diversity and welcoming international students to City College.

“I really want to bring awareness to diversity,” he said. “The best future lies in the combination of cultures.”  

During the meeting several issues for international students were brought up.

Some of these issues were language barriers between teachers and students and programs on campus being unavailable to international students.

Wang responded to these problems by saying his first task as commissioner will be to educate international students about the senate. He said he hopes this will encourage the students to bring issues they have to the senate’s attention. 

Wang also stressed the importance of volunteerism to the senate.

“Having a volunteer spirit is very important,” he said. 

Wang has been working with an organization called People Assisting The Homeless for almost a year. 

The organization aims to“end homelessness for individuals, families, and communities,” according to its mission statement. 

With the support of the senate and the newly appointed Student Advisor Joshua Villanueva, Wang said he hopes to instill this same spirit of helpfulness that he discovered through volunteer work.

The Associated Student Government will reconvene on September 27.