After almost a month of political strife, the Class of 2003 will be led this winter by interim co-presidents Jessica Walters '03 and Tim Whelan '03.
The selection of Whelan and Walters at the end of November to serve while the elected president Dan Chang '03 is off-campus was the end result of a lengthy and somewhat controversial decision-making process within the class council.
The procedure of selecting a Winter Term president began in mid-November when the council unanimously ratified a constitution that indicated Vice-President of the Class of 2003 Carolyn Johnson would assume the presidency. It also specified that a class-wide election would be held to elect an interim vice-president. Chang was not present at that meeting.
At the next session, during which the council was attempting to work out the specifics of the upcoming vice-presidential election, Chang and several other council members who had been absent from the previous meeting said they disagreed with the decision made on the interim presidency.
As a result of the disagreement, the council reconsidered its initial decision.
After Thanksgiving, Council Parliamentarian Bonnie Tice '03 hosted a council session at which Chang and Johnson were not in attendance by mutual agreement of themselves and the council.
During that meeting, the council reversed its initial decision, voting unanimously to "suspend the rules" -- circumventing the constitutional clause dictating that the vice-president should serve as interim president -- and subsequently decided unanimously to select Walters and Whelan as co-presidents.
Johnson told The Dartmouth yesterday that she is upset about the events of last fall, but was careful to explain why.
"It doesn't have to do with the title, it has to do with the way it played out," she said, indicating that she disagreed with the council's decision to reverse their initial resolution.
Despite these sentiments, however, Johnson added that "no matter what position I hold in council, I will still serve to my fullest ability."
Following the council's decision to appoint Walters and Whelan co-presidents, the unopposed ticket was submitted to the Class of 2003 for endorsement via a BlitzMail poll, Walters said. She added that no negative responses were received.
Council members expressed frustration that the council had not accomplished as much as it had set out to do during the Fall Term because of the time spent deciding on an interim class head.
"I feel like we did spin our wheels at times, but we did come up with something that would be best for everyone," Walters added.However, some also said the debate over the Winter Term president was positive for the '03 Class Council.
"A little discord, that's what it's all about, otherwise we're not being effective and people's voices aren't being heard," Chang said at the time. Whelan expressed similar sentiments.
All of the council members who spoke with The Dartmouth said the council will be getting back to business this winter and are looking forward to a very productive term.
As co-presidents, Whelan and Walters emphasized their intention to focus on organizing activities and serving the interests of the Class of 2003.
