Power Play

by Mahdi Murad

Several students have made good progress toward forming a student government – however, the process appears to be inefficient. So inefficient , in fact, that this government or what they call, the student association seems like it will never be born. So what will be this effort’s fate?

The Voice did research to find out the answer for this question. It is unclear who is at fault for the constitution not being finalized yet. Some background: Four students wrote a first draft of a constitution for the student body of AUIS. The students were not elected but, rather, choose on their own to begin this process. In November 2012, these students submitted a draft to the administration. Revisions and discussion have been made by the administration. Now, according to the Director of Student Services, the students plan to openly discuss the constitution soon and even hold a referendum. If these final steps take place, this will be great; however, it should have happened before the constitution was written – not after.

But has the inefficiency of the process been the fault of the students or the administration?

From the administration’s side: The students who wrote the first draft of the constitution do not put enough effort to revise the feedback they get from the administrations and some faculty staff members. In a meeting about this issue with the Voice, the administration states that it takes weeks for those students to apply the comments the administration gives them.

Hey students! You need to understand that what you guys are doing is a big responsibility and you should bear the facts of that responsibility. You need to understand that there are other students who want to establish that government too. As Spiderman learned in the movie, “With great power comes great responsibility.” If you think you cannot do it alone, then open the door to other students and ask them to help you with that. This process should not be behind closed doors, based on the ideas and wishes of a few students, but it should be a public, transparent effort to being representation to the student body.

From the students working on the constitution, they claim that they have done their job as students and will continue to do that job. But it is the administration and faculty staff members who do not eagerly help them finalize the constitution. It is not their fault that the announcement of the government has been late, it is the delay of the administration.

Though it is likely true that the administration has not been as fast as it could be, it is ultimately the responsibility of the students to get this done. If these students want the administration and faculty to do more work on setting up a student government, then what is the point of having a student government?

The AUIS Voice values the work on both sides, including the proactive students. However, the students should work harder and make the process more transparent and democratic. The student body will benefit from the establishment of a democratic student government that will work as a main bridge between the student and administration body.

However, student government is about student leadership. If these four students intend to be the founding fathers of student government at AUIS, then they need to truly lead this process, not leave it to others to finish.