Despite the fact that Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Joseph Watson promised that a committee of members from the administration, the A.S. Council and the Graduate Student Association would convene to comment on changes being made to the UC-wide policies regulating student organizations and fees, Watson failed to follow through on his pledge. Though the UC Student Association has been discussing the proposed revisions with the UC Office of the President, A.S. President Jenn Brown publicly criticized the review process and will send a list of the A.S. Council’s concerns about the policy’s amendments to UCOP.
One of the responsibilities of the A.S. Council is to protect the rights of the student body from the administration and any other threatening agents. The fact that the A.S. Council asked to be involved in the revisions process in the first place, and then followed up with its demand months later, is highly commendable. Our student government displayed incredible integrity of purpose and principle by involving itself in UC policy changes that will affect every UC student. That action serves as a reminder that we should not grow lax in continuing to fight for our rights.
It should therefore go without saying that Watson was wrong to promise the A.S. Council a fair amount of involvement and then renege on that pledge. Students and student governments will not continue to respect the administration and its policies if we and the promises made to us are not respected as well. Our opinions and rights are just as important as other political and social bodies, and the administration would do well to remember that.
The fact that as a result of Brown’s criticism Watson did own up to his mistake and publically apologize makes up for much of his earlier oversight. It also serves as a validation the fact that Brown and our A.S. Council did stand up for our collective right to participate in forming policies that directly effect us. Though Watson was in definitely in the wrong, both parties did display admirable integrity and responsibility.
