The Student Association has made great strides toward fulfilling their mission of representing the interests of Fredonia’s students this semester, but there’s also work that ought to be done as the year goes on.
As reported in this issue of The Leader, students will have a new SA administration next semester, led by President Joshua Ranney and Vice President Katherine Grabowski. In a departure from the competitive elections of years past, the winning ticket ran unopposed and garnered 1,319 votes per SA. Meanwhile, the Student Activity Fee was voted to remain mandatory with 1,327 votes in favor and 163 votes for a voluntary fee. This is the right decision, as it enables Fredonia to have a vibrant campus where clubs, and the people in them, can flourish.
By SA’s count, the total number of votes cast this year adds up to 1,490, or less than one third of the student population of Fredonia. That might not seem like very much, but SA made a greater effort this year to earn a mandate, sending every student an email with a link to the poll. There are many reasons roughly 70 percent of Fredonia’s students might not have voted, but accessibility was not one of them.
One of those reasons might be a lack of interest in the issues that the SA votes on. If people are uninterested, then they have every right to exclude themselves from student governance.
However, another reason there’s a lack of participation may be a lack of knowledge of what SA is or the purpose it serves. Students may not know who represents them at General Assembly meetings, or even that they are represented, period. SA representatives are obligated to serve their constituents, but there’s an undeniable disconnect between those who are in-the-know and those who aren’t, one which must be addressed if SA is to even remotely accomplish its mission.
Some may argue that students who care enough about issues facing the campus usually make the effort to make their voices heard, and that may be true. But it’s troubling to potentially allow a small group or groups of students to define the conversations that the entire student body should be having together.
The real work of the new administration, and of every other elected member of SA, does not stop when the votes are counted. Now is the time to earn an even greater mandate and to truly represent the interests of Fredonia students. At the same time, students who are interested in being represented also need to make the effort to involve themselves in the process and to contribute to the conversation on their own. It is a lofty goal, but greater participation is the key to a greater SA.