On Tuesday, Sept. 5, the Wesleyan Student Assembly (WSA) publicly released its preliminary agenda for the 2006-2007 academic year, an attempt to encourage more student input and participation in the WSA.
WSA President Zach Kolodin ’07 and Vice President Brittany Mitchell ’07 first proposed the preliminary agenda plan after working together with the six students of the Interim Executive Committee, including Community Outreach Committee (COCo) Chair Dave Woo ’08, Educational Policy Committee (EPC) Chair Sam Ruth ’08, Finance and Facilities Committee (FIFAC) Chair Estrella Lopez ’07, Student Affairs Committee (SAC) Chair Nate Ratner ’09, Coordinator Katie Kalafus ’09, and Treasurer JZ Goldin ’08.
“We wanted to take a more proactive stance this year,” said Kolodin. “Usually, the WSA is primarily reactive to the administration’s agenda, and we want to be able to respond with concrete issues of out own.”
A compilation of mostly ongoing projects, the agenda also included some relatively new items.
Prominently highlighted is the need to address diversity-related initiatives on campus. In addition to supporting existing programs and resources for minority groups, the WSA intends to establish a clear hate crime protocol. Such policies are already in place at colleges such as Amherst and Williams, who have trained officers and “sensitive crimes investigators” to assist students that are victims of hate crimes.
The WSA also stressed the need to educate students about their rights in the classroom. Over the years, multiple students have reported being put on the spot during class discussions, usually in relation to race or sexuality.
“This is a difficult issue because faculty members are expected to challenge students’ preconceptions surrounding these issues, but not in ways that put particular students in an uncomfortable setting,” Ruth said.
A cohesive plan will be formulated to address classroom rights once the entire WSA staff has been formed.
The WSA has already taken steps to address on-campus dining issues. The assembly is working off of last year’s “Concept of Dining” document, which was assembled by the WSA Dining Services Advisory. The document calls for more points on freshmen meal plans, greater operating hours at dining service venues, and more food-waste composting.
The WSA will continue to advocate for better dining policies for students, and promote these ideas’ implementation in the new Usdan University Center.
Lopez has been very involved with an initiative-in-progress aiming to provide students with a regular shuttle to New Haven. She said that administrators were very concerned with the associated costs, especially considering ongoing efforts to reduce the draw from the University endowment.
Administrators also expressed skepticism about student demand for such a service, despite a shuttle-service survey circulated last spring, which reported very high interest.
“I’m going to stick with the project, because I do think it would enhance the experience of Wesleyan students, particularly since the Peter Pan service has been cut so drastically,” Lopez said. She hopes to have a trial shuttle running soon.
The WSA is also committed to the implementation of the Alumni and Parents Speaker Network, a newly formed resource for student groups interested in bringing speakers to campus. By contacting Director of Alumni Education and University Lectures Lisa Secord, students will soon be able to submit requests for an alumnus or parent with particular attributes, experience, or area expertise.
If an appropriate person is identified within the Wesleyan Alumni Database, University Relations will then work with students to invite that speaker to campus. Ruth foresees the Network as a great way to improve student-alumni involvement and to inform current students about some of the incredible achievements of Wesleyan alumni.
The Network is the result of a student-administration initiative that took place last year, and it is expected to be up and running sometime this semester.
The WSA’s weekly Sunday meetings, which are open to all, will begin on Sept. 17. Regular meetings will be temporarily postponed during WSA internal elections, and will resume on Sept. 24. The WSA welcomes all comments on its preliminary agenda.
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