Opinion

Increasing SA interest should lead to heated elections

By Cesar Renero '17

Elections are here, yet some of them are nowhere near as competitive as they should be. The candidates for Class of 2016 President and Treasurer are running unopposed, as is the Class of 2015 President. In fact, the Class of 2015 Treasurer has no registered candidate. Meanwhile, the Class of 2017 election for president has five candidates, and the treasurer position is being contested between two candidates. What does this reflect about the nature of Student Assembly?

This election is also a major turning point for SA, as a resolution was recently passed to reduce the number of class representatives from five per class to four. All students will vote on a referendum that will definitively decide the matter, as it will be included in next week’s election ballot. A prime motive for reducing the number of class representatives was that far too many elections went unopposed, thus reducing the number would ideally increase competition. However, while sophomores and juniors may struggle to find candidates to fill their spots on SA, the Class of 2017 has shown itself to be bucking the trend. Perhaps, this is heralding a new era for SA.

SA is increasingly becoming a more transparent and efficient organization. This year has marked important changes in the way funding works for student organizations and clubs. The Funding Code reforms seem to have worked, as for the first time in recent memory SA still has money at the end of the school year. Additionally, issues that have arisen on campus—the most visible of which is the recent conversation about race and class—have become important topics of discussion for student representatives. On April 21, SA will dedicate the first hour of its general meeting to talk about The Movement’s constitution. This meeting comes after the Free Speech panel, which the Days-Massolo Center and the Alexander Hamilton Institute co-hosted on Wednesday April 16 and which will hopefully mark the start of a campus-wide discussion on a variety of issues about which many students feel passionate. This could bring about increased awareness and understanding of issues that not only affect the College but also transcend the Hill and affect the nation as a whole.

However, SA still has much to improve upon. Many students on campus know little of the function SA is supposed to serve, and do not even know their student representatives. These recent changes will require time for their impact to truly be felt, but perhaps there are other methods in which SA could increase student outreach and enhance its presence in student affairs. The Student Interests Coffee Hour provides students a direct conduit through which to voice opinions, suggestions and concerns directly to their representatives. While this is in and of itself a good idea, perhaps more outreach is needed. A designated table in Commons or McEwen, where students can talk about SA affairs on certain weekdays, would be a good way for representatives to directly approach the Hamilton community in a direct and accessible manner.

Another issue is the decreasing rate of participation as students become upperclassmen. Ryan Ong ’16, the current SA vice-president, noted “Unfortunately, participation in elections, running and voting, falls significantly from freshman class elections for each class year”.

Only time will tell if the competitiveness and interest current first-years are exhibiting will wane to the point when they too, as rising seniors, stop being interested in SA affairs. It is only natural for increasingly difficult coursework, daunting theses and leadership roles in other student groups to diminish the enthusiasm rising seniors have for SA. However, the changes it has enacted so far may pique additional interest in the organization, but as with most changes, only time will tell their effectiveness.

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