An infusion of newcomers into top leadership positions within the Student Assembly, coupled with an exodus of upperclassmen, has past and present members sharply divided over whether continuity in leadership or a fresh approach is better for the organization.
Of the nine major executives, more than half are sophomores. Some officers have a year or two of Assembly experience behind them. Others are completely new.
Moreover, a number of key players from last year have been noticeably less involved, including last year's vice president, Michael Newton '04, and several former executives and candidates who lost their respective races in last spring's election.
But based on the Assembly's work so far this term, the changed composition has more to do with attitude than policy.
Student Body President Janos Marton '04 praised this year's Assembly leadership, which he hand-picked to represent a variety of interests on campus.
"I think the leadership this year is particularly accessible and outgoing -- we're an unusual bunch, a pretty diverse group, but really easy to approach," Marton said. "I think we're doing a way better job at being representative of the student body."
Student Organizations Committee Chair Sally Newman '05 said she was unwilling to become involved in the Assembly until Marton's election assured her that the tenor of the organization had changed.
Newman attended one meeting last year, but quickly decided "that it was too much like student council in high school" -- too structured, too procedure-focused and too insular, she said.
But some former Assembly members said the current group has adopted a casual attitude and a young leadership corps at the risk of losing legitimacy in the eyes of the administration.
Last year's Assembly made it a priority to develop a strong relationship with administrators in order to gain bargaining power, Newton explained. "I think on a certain level that's been lost," he said.
Former President's Assistant Josh Marcuse '04 agreed.
"The work we were doing was designed to blend seamlessly with that of past Assemblies," he said. "Unless the Assembly is dedicated to a continuity of message, they will not be taken seriously by the administration."
But both Marton and Hildreth said they have a close and effective working relationship with key administrators like Dean of the College James Larimore and Dean of Residential Life Martin Redman.
The inexperience that plagues this year's Assembly leadership became evident when Mike Perry '03, rather than any member of the executive leadership, presented a history of the Assembly during cluster-representative orientation, Marcuse said.
"It's very interesting state of affairs when the student body president asks the person he defeated in the election to give the speech on the history of the Student Assembly -- the information first-years need to become acquainted with the Assembly -- because none of the executives feel qualified to do it," Marcuse said, noting that last year, then-Student Body President Molly Stutzman gave the presentation.
Although Marton '04 ran on a platform advocating radical change and appointed several committee chairs who lacked previous Assembly leadership experience, the Assembly has made few major structural reforms or implemented policies that differ significantly from those enacted in the past.
Indeed, the Assembly has carried over several projects from last year, including the Undergraduate Teaching Initiative, the Profiles in Excellence Teaching Award, the search for a student run off-campus social space and the "$1,000 project," money granted to a programming event that brings the campus together.
Nevertheless, the change in leadership has potential to affect the direction of policy this year.
Newman has changed her committee from a catch-all organization, which she and Marton said lacked focus, to one that is centered around coordinating environmental sustainability efforts on campus.
"Pretty much the reason I got brought onto SA was for recycling stuff," Newman said, noting that she knew Marton from her work with the Dartmouth Greens, which he co-founded last year.
A slightly more pro-Greek bent than in recent years is showing itself not only in Assembly leadership -- most conspicuously, Marton is a member of Chi Gamma Epsilon fraternity -- but in the willingness to consider providing funding to Greek houses.
The Assembly's Student Life Committee was open to the possibility of funding long-term structural improvements in Greek houses -- until a poll of the student body showed little support for the prospect. But based on write-in responses to the survey, the committee is mulling over the idea of contributing funding to Greek programming events.
And the Diversity Committee's principal project this term, the Inter-Organizational Council, seeks to coordinate programming between different organizations on campus, CFS houses included.
Committee chair James Joun '03, a member of Kappa Kappa Kappa fraternity, explained the rationale behind many of these projects.
"It's more effective to use the Greek system as an ally" than to fight it, he said.
Several previous Assembly members criticized what they described as an excessive focus on narrow issues at the expense of broader ones that affect a greater portion of the student body.
But they also said that Marton deserves credit for his efforts to revitalize the Assembly and said that it is difficult to pass judgment on the group's efficacy so early in the year.
"The worst thing that can ever happen to the Assembly is that it becomes irrelevant," Marcuse said. "Janos, by making a break with the older guard, has hopefully managed to prevent that."
That break, though, is not intentional or even desired, Assembly executives said. They bemoaned the lack of upperclass representation in the Assembly, but the executives acknowledged that several upperclassmen who were expecting their years of hard work to be rewarded with a leadership position have a good reason to be disappointed.
"I really want all those people to come back and help out, if nothing else," Hildreth said. "If they have strong opinions, then they should still be representatives so they can make their voices heard."
Newton, Perry and others said that they have personal reasons for not being involved with the Assembly this term, but praised the leadership, intelligence and creativity of Marton, Hildreth and other current executives.
"Overall, I think they've done their best to learn how it's been done in the past, but time will tell," Perry said.
