Last term, the Student Assembly asked that students be given the right to vote in elections for Trustees. Remember the Trustees? They're that fun-loving group that gave us the five commandments -- I mean, principles. Anyway, here's the response I received:
Oh wait, that's right ... I haven't gotten a response yet. I went to an administrator, and she told me to check with the Trustees. I checked with the Trustees, and they told me to go see President Wright. I went to see President Wright, and he told me to talk with the Chairman of the Board. Turns out the Chairman of the Board needs a few weeks to draft a response.
With all due respect to Chairman Bosworth, I think we all know what the answer is. I mean, come on ... How long does it take to say "yes"? Not long. On the other hand, any Ambassador (read: Chairman Bosworth) will tell you that it takes a lot more time to draft a "no" which actually sounds like a "maybe."
Well, Chairman Bosworth, I'm not particularly interested in "Maybe. Well, actually, no ... But let's pretend it's maybe." Still, why am I so frustrated with "no" this time? I mean, come on, I've heard "no" so many times that the Student Assembly actually throws a party every time I hear "yes."
Here's the reason: I finally figured out that students have no institutional voice at this College. It seems to me that a College which prides itself on educating tomorrow's leaders should encourage its students to play an active role in shaping their community. But, as someone who last year asked to be the "voice" of the students, I'm telling you that we have caught a chronic case of laryngitis, courtesy of Dartmouth's Trustees.
Sure, students sit on various College Committees (which advise various College bureaucrats). But the reality is that few students have access to these committees, and few of these committees actually do anything. Worst of all, the committees themselves pick which students should join their ranks.
The Student Assembly is asked to make suggestions (sometimes), but, even then, there's no guarantee that these will be seriously considered. So I'm beginning to think that this task might just be about narrowing down the choices in order to save the administrators some time. That doesn't sound to me like empowering students.
Case Dorkey, the Assembly Vice-President, and I were recently discussing our role in the College Committee nomination process when Case said, "I just figured it out: we do the Administration's dirty work." Okay, so Case didn't actually put it that gingerly, but you get the point. It's sort of sad that it took Case and me this long to get the point, huh?
Or how about the Task Force on the Trustees' five principles? There are several students who sit on this Task Force. But, as is mentioned repeatedly any time the five principles come up, this Task Force has no power. And, to point out the obvious, where were students when the principles were being drafted?
Like I said, students have no institutional voice at this College. And, speaking of the five principles, even several faculty members recently pointed out that the way in which the Trustees communicated their five principles "disempowered" students. When I expressed this sentiment to a Trustee, I was told that students will have a larger institutional voice than we've ever had when it comes time to shape the future of Dartmouth's residential and social life.
I'm the type to take people at their word, and, as I've mentioned before, what choice do we have? We have to believe that we can make a difference; otherwise, we might lose the opportunity to do so.
However, as Case pointed out to me, having an institutional voice means that you don't have to take administrators at their word; you don't have to hope for the best. Rather, when you have an institutional voice, you KNOW that you're going to be heard. You KNOW that you're going to affect the decisions which affect our daily lives.
And while I think President Wright cares a lot more than his predecessor did about what students think, honestly, I think we deserve better. President Wright is like the Sun-King who will, on occasion, grant you an audience so that you might, for a few moments, have his ear. Come on ... are students really being listened to when the best way to influence the future of the College is to secure an invitation to dine with President Wright? The truth is, Dartmouth is not a place where we can speak our minds and expect to be heard. No, it's a place where, if you scream the loudest and can manage to get the President's ear, your thoughts will be graciously considered by the appropriate committees in the appropriate manner at the appropriate time.
I'll say it again, students deserve better.
Interestingly enough, I'm continually asked by administrators why turnout in Student Assembly elections is so low. NEWS FLASH: the Student Assembly has no power.
Don't get me wrong; I'm proud of what the Student Assembly has done this year ... We've screamed louder and accomplished more than I ever thought we might.
But we shouldn't have to scream.
When I told an administrator that we shouldn't have to scream, he responded by saying, "Nonsense! There will always be a Heavey, or a Dorkey, who will lead the students in their battles."
Well, Jon Heavey graduated, and, if the gods are on his side, Case will graduate soon, too. And you know what? It shouldn't take thousands of signatures to prove that we need a better weight room. And it shouldn't take hundreds of sleepless nights to demonstrate that student organizations need more money.
No, if we're right, we're right. And the volume of our voice should not be the measure of how right we are. Don't get me wrong, I'm going to keep screaming, and I hope you'll join me. Because if there's any chance that we can affect what happens around us, I think we should take it.
But I'm tired of screaming. And so, unlike last year, I won't be running for Student Assembly President this Spring. (Which is good for students since it is highly unlikely that the Sun-King will want to take me to lunch after this column is printed.)
The Trustees have challenged us to reimagine the future of Dartmouth residential and social life. Fine, we'll do it. But, now, I challenge the Trustees, and Dartmouth's Administration, to reimagine the role students play in defining the future of Dartmouth.
I don't care whether it's a student on the Board of Trustees, a vote in Trustee elections, or a student government that has some degree of institutionalized power. But, one way or another, Sun-King -- I mean, President -- Wright, we deserve better.
