U students are represented and governed by a select group of elected individuals known as the Associated Students of the University of Utah, which is responsible for generally improving the college experience through programs, policies and events. If you yourself are a member of ASUU, chances are you understand its decision-making process, you agree with its directives and you benefit from its efforts. If, on the other hand, you are not personally an ASUU officer, it’s pretty likely that (provided you care about ASUU at all) you think it is ineffective, disconnected and insignificant. Or at least, that’s what I think.
Student government at the U means very little to many college students, and it’s a shame that an organization with such potential can’t ever seem to get anywhere when it comes to helping students succeed.
A dismal percentage of U students actually vote in ASUU elections (12 percent) not only because most students do not understand the differences between student government candidates and parties, but because they don’t care.
Regardless of who seems to be in charge in the ASUU office, costs for students are always on the rise, clubs never have enough money and our “U-life” is still plagued by commuter-campus apathy. Without concrete solutions to these problems, ASUU becomes a glorified popularity contest-not at all a valuable tool for the students who need it most.
Even further, ASUU remains inept at best serving many segments of the U population because the body itself is not demographically representative of students. For example, few-if any-ASUU officers are nontraditional students. Few of them understand from experience the difficulties of not being able to afford college. And while there are exceptions, ASUU officials reflect minimal ethnic and gender diversity. How can student government adequately represent our campus if it only personally represents one way of life?
Student government, in order to advance the needs of constituents, must be able to draw from a wide range of perspectives. It must be able to weigh decisions by considering not only the numbers of students that will benefit, but also making sure that no student is abandoned simply because he or she does not fit the “University of Utah” student mold. Without such forethought, ASUU as an institution is not only ineffective, but illegitimate.
And I refuse to think that the biggest contribution these individuals can make to our campus is to throw yet another party or concert series. If you want to get people involved on campus, you have to capture their attention for more than an evening of song and dance; if you want to build a sense of community and collectivism, you have to make students care about their school and about one another. A concert doesn’t do that. It’s time we demand more from student government: more vision, more planning and more results.
ASUU as an organization has been unable to effect real change on campus, but rather wastes its time pursuing the next awesome party and disregarding the needs of real students. ASUU lacks credibility and purpose, without which even the most well-intentioned idea is doomed to failure. Student government must do exactly that: Govern the students. To do that, it must be composed of informed, creative leaders who aren’t willing to trivialize the college experience or the needs of the real people they represent. Here’s hoping ASUU presents the type of student government from which we can all benefit this year.