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December 14, 2004
HUSC report card
I’ll admit that last semester, I was skeptical of the thenąHUSC president and vice-president elect Shona
Ramchandani and Mike Pesko. I didn’t vote for the pair, and I was distraught when the results were announced.
I’ll also admit that I am still skeptical č although part of that is probably just my natural tendency in regard to government.
Thus far, one semester has almost passed, and only one general assembly meeting remains. As all students receive a grade at the end of a semester, so should your elected body. Let’s begin.
It can be argued that HUSC has done very little this semester. That argument carries some weight; I would bet that most students could not point out more than one thing that HUSC has done for campus.
While that is a problem, attendance is a larger issue. HUSC depends on the students it governs. Without students, HUSC becomes no more than a bank account that gives students and organizations checks with 40 signed signature lines. Regardless of your opinion on the MPIRG proceedings last year, there was one inspirational prospect that came out of that meeting: One organization motivated enough students to support their cause that 100E was packed, and the lecture hall was standing room only.
It also doesn’t help when representatives and exec board members are absent from general assembly meetings. If continual attendance problems abound, the Political Affairs Committee and the president should address the issue.
To their credit, Ramchandani and Pesko have been working at this problem and are continually trying to tackle it. In the past, HUSC was a place to bicker, fight and launch personal attacks. Now, the environment is more civil with a by-law now in place to allow Pesko to make minor deviations to get around the archaic system of Robert’s Rules and speed up meetings.
HUSC is also taking stands on larger issues, such as an obscene cartoon in the Washington Post attacking handicapped persons, as well as local issues, which include appreciating the late Donavon Larson’s work and dedication to the university. HUSC has even begun offering free coffee to draw students to the HUSC office.
The latest and most effective innovation is the creation of an “action items list,” which was first used on Dec. 7.
The list contains specific actions that a person or committee are going to do regarding a specific issue.
With this list, HUSC can hold representatives and committees accountable for what they have said they will do.
This list, as well as passed and pending resolutions are online at www.hamline.edu/husc for any student to view. Thus, students now have no excuse to not know about HUSC’s actions.
Contact information for the HUSC council is also posted online. If you have a gripe, let them know about it.
HUSC can always do more for students. Here are some final suggestion on how to further improve HUSC for the next semester and the years to come.
First, let students know what is going on in general assembly before the meeting so students can attend and vote on important issues.
Second, someone, probably Pesko, should hold a few more highly publicized “How to do HUSC” sessions in spring semester, as he did earlier this year, to thwart Robert’s Rules anxiety. The concept was excellent.
Third, HUSC should create something physically visible and lasting on campus. The capital-improvement fund has over $30,000 in it, and it needs to be spent in a visible and permanent manner.
Lastly, HUSC must continue to take stands on issues and make the student body’s voice heard.
Keep up the good work. Final grade: B.
Posted by msveum at December 14, 2004 10:39 AM