Letter to the EditorLetter to the Editor
Presidency a one-year gig, be realistic
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To the editor:
Over the course of four years here at Western I have observed the election of three University Students’ Council presidents, each promising to be better or different than the last, yet I struggle to recall any specific achievement one of them accomplished. Why is this?
In the humble opinion of this observant, it is because USC presidents are elected to brief one-year terms, but do so by campaigning on large unfocused platforms. One year is a very short amount of time for any elected official.
In political science jargon, USC presidents are “lame duck” presidents, meaning by virtue of the fact their tenure in office will be over very quickly and they can’t be re-elected, no one expects them to accomplish much and there are no consequences if that turns out to be the case.
Even once elected it is difficult for USC presidents to accomplish a great deal because their power and influence is not limitless. Many of the proposals comprising campaign platforms require approval from either or both the Senate and the Board of Governors. The Board of Governors and Senate are both heavily influenced by ex-officio members the likes of the mayor of London, the University president, the vice-presidents for academics, housing and other core university divisions, not to mention the deans from each faculty — these are all experienced professionals who have agendas of their own.
To remedy this problem of limited accomplishment candidates should do away with these oversized platforms and multiple initiatives and refine their campaigns down to a single or two proposals and focus entirely on them. This would allow them concentrate the entire, although somewhat limited, resources of a USC president on pushing an initiative through the more powerful general administration, Senate and Board of Governors, and making real progress on just one or two ideas once they are elected.
Hopefully this would transform the USC presidency from an office struggling to accomplish numerous goals into an office effectively changing one or two things about Western for the better each year and making its presence felt to all students.
—Miles Hopper
Political Science IV
Remember how we had to renegotiate our bus passes last year? And how we got a clause entitling us to a partial refund should the LTC go on strike? And remember how the LTC went on strike? The moral of the story: Don’t. Disrepect. Stephen. Lecce.
Miles -
While I appreciate your criticism and see where you’re coming from, I do have to interject. There have been differences from year to year, though to the uninvolved, inactive student they may be hard to spot. Of note, one of Emily Rowe’s campaign platforms was doing more for students during high-stress peak times. Did you notice the exam de-stress center in the UCC gyms this past December?
Have you read Ray Park’s platform? A big part of it is devoted to closing the gap between the USC and students. This initiative includes a Partnership Fund to provide financial support to any organizations that are collaborating on an event. Such support has never been available before and will definitely encourage a different kind of programming opportunity for students. He also wants to install a Central Events Calendar right in the atrium of the UCC. Park also wants to start an online Presidential Blog so that students can see how the USC President is spending their year and reach them at any time. All of these things really do inspire obvious changes that will be seen by the student body at large.
Shout out to candidate Mike Tithecott as well for incorporating obvious changes into this platform. He as well mentions a Presidential Blog. Some of his other great campus-changing ideas include installing bus shelters on campus (an idea from former candidate Ben Singer which many were disappointed to not see come into fruition), and adding more lights around campus.
As a Political Science student, I’m sure you know that a political platform is of course just the beginning. Once elected the President must work together with his VPs, his USC and UWO to make their platform become a reality. What I am suggesting is that perhaps the problem is not the candidates, or their one-year term, but simply that change is not easily achieved by any stretch of the imagination. Let’s give our Presidents (past, present & future) more credit please.
Thanks,
Marissa Joffre
Psych/History/Creative Writing IV