This past fall, the Wesleyan Student Assembly (WSA) had a successful semester. And that’s a statement that most WSA members would second. As they reflect on recent achievements, the WSA hopes to build on the momentum that they’ve generated in recent months.
“Last semester was by far the strongest semester I’ve seen or heard of,” said Mike Pernick ’10, WSA President. “For the first time, no one [in the WSA] resigned.  Usually people feel like they’re not doing anything.”

It’s not just WSA members who feel that last semester was a good one. In a WSA survey, 79.7% of students said they approved of the job the WSA is doing.

Throughout the fall semester the WSA worked with administrators on important issues from fire safety searches to last May’s incident on Fountain Ave.  The representatives hope to follow through on the initiatives begun last semester, in addition to tackling new issues such as the academic calendar and the University’s public image.

According to Pernick, representatives—who he praised for their commitment to fighting for students—are ready to take on these new challenges.

One new initiative for this semester is the formation of the University Outreach Committee, which will consist of President Roth, administrators from University Relations and Communications and WSA President and Vice President, Pernick and Saul Carlin ’09, respectively.

“The first meeting will focus on how the university can harness new media to enhance outreach to the younger generation—prospective students and younger alumni,” Carlin said.

The committee will meet two to three times per semester to discuss the University’s message to the outside world through admissions and communications with Middletown, among other things.  According to Pernick, this will be the first time students have had input in university relations and the school’s image.

Another spring semester priority for the WSA is the finals schedule. This past semester, students expressed dissatisfaction with the newly shortened reading week. The administration had hoped a shorter academic calendar would allow students to leave earlier at the end of semester and avoid expensive late December flights. The majority of students disapproved of the new policy, however, which many said did not allow for enough time to prepare for finals.

In addition to making sure that students are academically satisfied, the WSA is working to ensure that students get to have a little fun.

“One important goal regarding party policy is to ensure that the students have the right to gather on University property,” said Becky Weiss ’10, chair of the Student Affairs committee. “The Fountain Avenue incident would not have occurred if students were not asked to leave the Fountain backyards in the first place.  We would also like to see lighter sanctions for party hosts.”

Overall, representatives are pleased the administration’s responsiveness to students’ interests, which allowed both parties to collaborate on Fountain Ave. issues. “President Roth has been utterly phenomenal in his respect for students and seeks student input and Dean Mike is the biggest ally to students,” Pernick said.  “In the end we usually win because the administrators that matter hear student input.  There are some that don’t value student input.  But thankfully they don’t win out.”

The WSA is working hard to bring students’ concerns to the administration and encourages students to voice their opinions. Students are welcome to attend WSA meetings, which are every Sunday at 7 p.m. in Usdan.  Since last semester, students can also schedule an appointment with a representative through the WSA website http://www.wesleyan.edu/wsa/repvisit, a service the WSA wishes more students would take advantage of.
“I’m really proud of our accomplishments,” Carlin said.  “Our duty is to represent the student body and we really want to hear all the opinions out there. It’s good that people trust us and put our faith in us, but there’s even more we could be doing.”