Of all the positions open in this week’s A.S. elections, commissioner of programming is perhaps the one that the average, uninvolved student should care about most. While many of the big issues of this year’s election concern allocating funds for various acronym-ed organizations or rehashing blame trajectory for the Student-Run Television scandal, the A.S. programming official essentially has one job: to deliver concerts and other programming that most students like.

So while it is curious that only one candidate, independent Di Lam, is running to be next year’s commissioner, we find that she is a good fit for the job. Lam’s experience working in the programming office under current Commissioner Eric Morris has schooled her in the tenuous duty of finding, selecting and paying musicians and other performers that will appeal to a broad cross-section of UCSD — by no means an easy task, but one which we think Lam’s broad music tastes and deferential personality will aid.

She will enter an office whose accomplishments this year leave much to be desired. The notoriously unattended WinterFest gave students a perfect example of what happens when things go awry at the programming office. Whether we should blame the general difficulty of booking appealing acts in the winter, or an A.S. ad campaign that kicked off far too late for the disappointing attendance, we urge Lam and future commissioners to learn from this year’s mistakes.

With its successes and failures visible from the RIMAC bleachers, the programming office bears a considerable burden for responsibilities that are otherwise so fun. We urge Lam to think outside of the box when it comes to filling those seats: Why keep FallFest and WinterFest on a Friday when much of UCSD has already gone home for the weekend? And the office should consider the potential overspending that goes toward getting a huge headliner for Sun God, when campus tradition brings students together, anyway.

We must also mention the importance for this office of communicating through (and maintaining good relations with) campus media outlets like the Guardian — especially given the tenuous history. Making demands for coverage and cutting off contact if they are not met is not a reasonable way for established campus leaders to deal with each other, and they do not help either one’s goals.

The A.S. programming office needs a leader with an open mind, thrifty monetary habits and a diverse record collection. As long as she is willing to step out of the shadow of past commissioners and create new solutions to the same old problems, Lam is a good fit for the job.