OPINION & EDITORIAL
A step in the right direction
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by Badger Herald Editorial Board
Monday, March 28, 2005
As students headed for Cancun or points in between, the state Legislature began the process of answering repeated calls for additional student representation on the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents.
On Tuesday, Assembly Bill 158 was unanimously approved by the Universities Committee of that body. The bill will now move to a floor vote, and we urge both houses of the state Legislature to take expedient action on the bill and send it to Gov. Jim Doyle for approval.
However, as with any piece of legislation, this bill is not perfect. Its proposal for the addition of a non-traditional student (an undergraduate older than 24) fills a legitimate interest, but we prefer a guarantee that one member of the Board of Regents draw directly from the student population at UW-Madison, given its status as the state’s flagship university.
The concentration of research dollars and the highest population of out-of-state students (as well as other unique characteristics) make Madison a campus with special circumstances deserving special attention in the policy making process. With time for amendment on the floor, we urge the Legislature to take this step in assuring Madison-specific needs a seat at the regents’ table.
AB 158 also makes provisions for the two-year terms of the student regents to stagger. Thus, students will always have a seat at the table should an appointment process stall for political reasons (as has been the case in the past). Staggered terms would also allow a new student regent to become acquainted with the board while another student already sat. This is a wise consideration.
If the Legislature would pony up and offer a stipend for the hard work involved in representing students, they would reach the optimal arrangement for student representation. By definition a non-traditional student is in a difficult spot to serve on the board, as such a student will likely have non-traditional financial obligations for an undergrad. If the ASM chair can receive a stipend, student regents ought to as well.
With election season approaching, the governor could take this small and relatively innocuous opportunity to extend an olive branch to the student constituency he has spurned throughout his first term. We’d welcome the addition of another student regent as a step in the right direction.
Anonymous (March 29, 2005 @ 2:52pm):
To the citizenry of the state of Wisconsin:
I have been an Emergency Medicine physician for seven years. Never had my medical competence, integrity or character been questioned until I moved to Wisconsin from my home State of Indiana in November 2002. After a 1
Paul Russo (March 29, 2005 @ 2:57pm):
To the citizenry of the state of Wisconsin:
I have been an Emergency Medicine physician for seven years. Never had my medical competence, integrity or character been questioned until I moved to Wisconsin from my home State of Indiana in November 2002. After a 1
Anonymous (March 29, 2005 @ 10:35pm):
You know what else would be a step in the right direction? If the assholes on the state's negotiating committee would offer a fair contract to the dozen or so state employee unions who are waiting to be paid a living wage, while the fat cats on the committee vote themselves large raises every year at taxpayer expense.
