A Thurgood Marshall College senior who’s more likely to ask, “”Hey, how’s it going?”” than to talk about himself, Gallagher was elected last year to serve as the chief executive officer of an organization serving over 20,000 students. The responsibilities of the president of the Associated Students are virtually never-ending. It’s not uncommon for Gallagher to work 16-hour days, and generally these strenuous hours vary day-to-day, just as much as his vast array of responsibilities do.

“”Jeremy gives 110 percent,”” A.S. Commissioner of Academic Affairs Todd Tolin said. “”I swear that guy lives up here.””

Gallagher represents the student body in a variety of capacities, including attending campus policy and Chamber of Commerce meetings.

“”Some days, I’m just like, ŒWow, this is overwhelming,'”” Gallagher said. “”But I serve as the representative for the student body in whatever capacity that is needed.””

The job may overwhelm him at times, but Gallagher remains dedicated.

“”A past A.S. president told me, ŒYou have no idea what you’re getting yourself into,'”” he said. “”I thought I knew what was going on, because I had previous experience as a commissioner, but it was really a dramatic level of involvement change. I mean, I never thought I’d be waking up before sun-up and working before school even started. But I really, really enjoy it.””

A communication and political science double major, Gallagher is described as Œa people person’ by co-workers and friends.

“”Jeremy gets his stuff done, but he’s fun to work with,”” Tolin said. “”I just feel that he is a really good leader ‹ he does it with humor. Jeremy’s humor is really unique and random. You’d have to experience it. I think anyone who works with him gets used to him.””

For example, in the cluttered, always-bustling A.S. office, Gallagher can often be heard yelling random phrases.

“”ŒI am a lamp!’ is probably the phrase of the year,”” Tolin said. “”Last year, it was ŒWonderfun!’ Whenever I’m up here with him, he always treats everyone the same ‹ he jokes with everyone. Even though there’s supposedly some sort of A.S. hierarchy, you never feel like you’re in one up here.””

Currently, Gallagher is also involved with the College Democrats, a student organization committed to promoting Democratic ideals.

In the past, Gallagher also ran the Thurgood Marshall College TV station, and last year he served as a resident advisor at Sixth College.

Tolin worked alongside Gallagher as a fellow RA.

“”He really made that work environment fun,”” Tolin said. “”He had all these really amazing relationships with his residents ‹ even now they get really excited when he visits.””

Tolin is also an RA this year for many of Gallagher’s former residents.

“”It gets really difficult to compete with Jeremy Paul Gallagher,”” he said. “”He really exudes this air of being laid-back, and people feel comfortable around him. But in reality, he’s not all that laid-back. But even when he gets stressed, he puts everyone else in this comfort zone.””

Gallagher contends his RA experience was one of his most successful accomplishments at UCSD.

“”[Being an RA] played a huge role in my life,”” Gallagher said. “”That was really, really fun. It was probably one of the greatest experiences of my life. There were only six RAs on staff, and the level of intensity of starting a brand-new college and really working through that whole process with just six people is really amazing.””

Such experiences, coupled with personal ideals, have inspired Gallagher’s vision for changes needed on campus.

“”I think the campus in general is more liberal than not, and so I think I’m representative of that,”” Gallagher said. “”I ran with a liberal group [in last year’s election], and so we ran on more liberal ideals. But I’m the type of person who likes to stick issue-specific, and for each issue I make up my decision.””

For Gallagher, a key issue is providing a secure environment for all students on campus. In an attempt to reach one of the specific communities on campus, Gallagher is pushing for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender-themed housing. He hopes to send a completed proposal to Housing and Dining Services by this winter.

“”The way I thought is that this is something that’s wanted, and my goal is to improve the school,”” Gallagher said. “”LGBT-themed housing is something all the other UCs have. [UCSD’s] policy on campus is blatantly heterosexist, and so this is just one thing to fix …. in an attempt to improve life around campus and for students living on campus.””

Many students have supported this initiative.

“”Forming LGBT housing sounds like a great idea to me. I know I longed for that kind of community in my undergrad,”” said Mark Smith, a first-year graduate student working toward a master’s in fine arts who listed his name in UCSD’s “”out”” list. “”It provides invaluable support to those that may feel lost in what can seem like an Œinvisible’ culture.””

Although Geoffrey Williams, an Earl Warren College freshman who also added his name to the “”out”” list, feels that the existing housing policy is neither hetero- nor homosexist, he also believes the addition of such housing would be a benefit.

“”I feel that his campaign is a very decent, useful proposition,”” he said.

Gallagher would also like to “”[boost] the level of how students view UCSD through athletics.””

While working to excite undergraduates about school spirit can be a daunting task, Gallagher measure his success on person at a time.

“”Working with the people is the most fun part of all this,”” he said. “”It makes it worth it. I’m here for them.””