Student Sen. Joshua Yaciuk, a Vision party representative for off-campus students, announced his resignation at the chamber’s first Tuesday meeting of the semester, effectively ending his career as its longest-serving member.
During his farewell speech, the political science senior said the Senate body is not doing enough to connect with constituents, and he urged his fellow senators to take action and use their seats to make an impact.
“Find something you care about to keep you fighting for more, even when you run into obstacles,” he said.
A two-year tenure
Yaciuk has been an active member of UF’s Vision Party — the chamber’s current majority group — since its founding, he said, having participated in its first campaign. His official tenure in the Senate began after two lost election bids, when he was accepted as a summer replacement senator in 2024.
The Vision Party was founded in 2023, stating a mission to end the Senate gridlock caused by the previous leading parties, Gator and Change. In the past, Vision has advocated for sustainability measures and mental health resources, aiming to uphold its pillars of transparency, unity and inclusion.
Last Fall, the party ran unopposed for the 50 on- and off-campus seats, making UF history as the first group to do so.
Improving student safety was Yaciuk’s primary focus as a Senator, he said. He worked with the UF Police Department to better campus safety by forming an Ad Hoc committee — a temporary group within the Senate — to coordinate changes.
He said his motivation to do so emerged during his first Spring in office when a student was killed in a traffic accident.
“Although I had no connection to the student, I felt [a] responsibility to do something,” he said on Tuesday.
According to Yaciuk, the committee succeeded in improving the blue light emergency system around campus, removing vision-obscuring vegetation on Sorority Row and spearheading a project to add a speed-monitoring device to Hull Road — the site of the previous fatality.
Plans to come
Now, Yaciuk said he will take time to focus on his new position as a finance manager for Dance Marathon, a nonprofit organization aimed at fundraising and raising awareness for UF Health Shands Children’s Hospital.
In his absence, the Replacement and Agenda Committee will announce the off-campus vacancy to the Senate and recommend any interviewed applicants they deem the best fit for the seat, according to the Senate’s Rules and Procedures.
Contact Sofia Garcia at sc.garcia@ufl.edu. Follow her on X at @sconsuelogarcia.
