Student Union

VICE PRESIDENT OF FINANCE DAVID COHEN:

Good afternoon. 

Today I want to briefly talk about the General Budget, a process by which our Student Activities Fee, totaling approximately 2.2 million dollars for next year, is allocated. 

In the past, I believe the process for creating the General Budget has not been as transparent as it needs to be, and the spending of certain accounts has not been made clear enough to students. Two accounts I am in the process of reevaluating are Campus Contributions, and the Assembly Series. I have been in conversations with administrators for the past week in order to provide more accurate breakdowns of the campus contributions, so students can understand what money is being spent on for the 560 Music Building, the Office of Student Activities, the Community Service Office, and so on. 

The 5 Executives also sat down with Barb Rhea this week to try and redesign the applications process for Assembly Series speakers, so that students have more of a voice in the decision making process, the allocations for speakers are fair to all groups, and speakers are strategically planned out to maximize benefits. 

I invite you to comment on my previous blog post regarding the DUC contribution, and to continue commenting on my blog posts this week about other accounts in the General Budget. As always, you can email at finance@su.wsutl.edu with your opinions. Thank you!

STUDENT BODY PRESIDENT JEFF NELSON:

Let me begin by thanking everyone who has provided feedback on the various initiatives that the new Student Union administration has undertaken. This unprecedented level of interaction with the student body is at the heart of our call to renew activism.

Many have applauded our approach and have praised the efforts to mobilize and engage students. But there are some who still question what the plan to renew activism actually entails.

In my inaugural address, I noted that the real battle on this campus is not with the administration, but with a disunited and disinterested student body. In order for Student Union to make substantial improvements for students, we must maintain a relationship with the Administration that is characterized not by contentiousness but by collaboration.

The basis of this collaboration hinges on the ability of students to act as a collective force. Our plan to renew activism does not call on students to be unnecessarily antagonistic. Instead it calls on each student to join an elevated and ongoing dialogue addressing issues that impact our day-to-day experience. Issues like technology, dining and school spirit are areas where students have an opportunity to lead in setting the agenda for positive change.

Dean McLeod often says that our University has no stockholders, only stakeholders. Collectively, students are indeed one of the largest stakeholders and should have a role in making policy decisions that will shape our undergraduate experience. In order for us to realize this role, we must renew activism by empowering each student to be a force for change and improvement at Wash. U.

In the coming weeks, we will officially release our agenda for the upcoming year. I encourage you to read the draft of it by going to http://su.wustl.edu/agenda. Please post your comments, suggestions, criticisms and other feedback on this and other blog posts on the site.

Thank you.

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Attachment: 

05 April 09 General Budget and Activism.pdf