Though Claire Lew’s tenure as ASG president is winding down, she has used her final weeks in office to kickstart a conversation on campus that could permanently change the face of student government at Northwestern. That conversation was at the forefront of Wednesday’s Senate meeting.
- Presenting it to Senate as new business, Lew opened official ASG dialogue on a bill that would reduce the total number of senators from 49 to 20 and institute campus-wide elections for those positions.
The bill, written by a committee of ASG members headed by Lew during winter quarter, is now set to be voted on during next Wednesday’s Senate meeting.
Lew insisted that her main goal is to start a discussion on how to restore “legitimacy and efficiency” to NU’s student representative body. She said the legislation addresses issues of disproportionate representation for different student groups under the current set-up, while making Senate positions more important individually.
“I’m not trying to shove this bill through Senate,” Lew said. “I don’t expect it to pass as is. This is an opportunity to talk about how we can better serve students, a discussion that I hope continues well after I’m gone.”
The proposal sparked heated debate on the Senate floor, as a strong contingent of senators vehemently opposes the idea of reducing the number of representatives.
“This is an aggressively bad idea,” said Isaac Hasson, a sophomore senator representing Students for Ecological and Environmental Development. “A bill like this favors more recognizable figures on campus gaining seats as opposed to those who might be more enthusiastic about the position. In the end, they’re using a drastic bill to address what is really more of a public relations issue for ASG.”
Academic Vice President Gabrielle Daniels also dismissed the measure, saying the student body won’t stand for the proposed reorganization.
“Just talking with a number of students and faculty members as well, the consensus is that this is a horrible idea.”
Further debate and an official vote on the legislation will occur next week, coinciding with presidential elections and promising for an eventful Senate meeting.
- Student Life Vice President Katie Bradford proposed legislation asking the Office of Undergraduate Admissions to improve communication with prospective students on the presence of minority group resource centers on campus.
The bill would suggest providing more immediate information on such campus locations as the Multicultural Center, Black House, Hillel and LGBT Resource Center, and seeks to include such sites on campus tours.
“This is an effective way to reach out and try to approach the university’s stated goal of attracting a more diverse student body,” Bradford said.
- Over 140 Chicago Public Schools students from EPIC Academy visited campus Wednesday, getting a taste of academic life at Northwestern with the help of Lew and a group of volunteer student mentors. Lew described it as “a wonderful experience.”
“It really reminds us of the impact we can have on people who aren’t here, and that type of interaction is really mutually beneficial.”