Big-picture issues took center stage at last night’s A.S.
Council meeting. The council listened to suggestions about revitalizing its
elections and improving campus traditions and received a pat on the back from a
former member.
during public input about the need to remove what he described as a roadblock
to student participation in elections.
“People take this council as seriously as they take
elections,” he said. Hirshman targeted a rule that prohibits A.S. council
candidates from campaigning more than two weeks out from the conclusion of
voting. At a campus with 21,000 undergraduates, he said, two weeks of
campaigning simply isn’t enough to convey a message to the student body.
Hirshman contrasted the rule with efforts that the council
has made this year to lobby administrators against regulating free speech in
public areas like
and Library Walk.
Former Vice President of Finance and Resources and UCSD alum
Conrad Ohashi then took the podium to recognize councilmembers who were
graduating or had served at least two years on the council.
“I strongly believe credit should be given to anyone who
does this for more than one year,” Ohashi said as he prepared to pass out
congratulatory Moleskine notebooks to councilmembers and praise their
dedication.
The moment of retrospection came as A.S. councilmembers
prepared to leave their posts to make way for next year’s council. They’ll also
be leaving the familiar wood-floored realm of Price Center Ballroom when they
change their meeting location to the fourth floor of the recently completed
Price Center East next week.
The meeting was not without some regularity, however, as
Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Penny Rue made her third quarterly visit to
the council to outline her efforts to expand UCSD’s breadth of traditions.
Rue walked the council through a presentation titled “Beyond
Sun God… Creating Possibilities” in an attempt to distill the characteristics
of successful traditions at UCSD and other schools. She identified an event’s
fun factor, memorableness, element of reverence and ability to reach across and
beyond UCSD’s six colleges as essential to adding to the current repertoire of
Unolympics, Sun God, Pancake Breakfasts and Chancellor’s 5K Run-Walk.
Rue also related a few suggestions that she had encountered, including a
camp-out on Library Walk, a freshman march to the beach and a campuswide effort
to break a world record.
During the ensuing question-and-answer session with Rue,
Warren Senator Peter Benesch asked her to comment on the recent controversy
surrounding the RIMAC Annex. After delivering a fairly diplomatic response of
her own, Rue yielded to Athletic, Recreation and Sports Facility Board co-Chair
Daniel Palay.
Palay, who confronted council opposition to the project at a
heated meeting two weeks ago, sought to smooth over some of their objections by
announcing a plan to form two new standing committees with student
representatives who will oversee the athletics and sports facilities
departments.
