SCARLET AND BLACK

Page Five

Jolmson Wants [Ilunges‘in Attitude, Structure, Focus

that changes will have to be
made for next year. There is
less agreement, however, as to
what changes have to be made,
or even what the problem ac—
tually is.

Publius put the entire blame
on a hypocritical and impotent
structure. Later “broadsides”
were to propose the complete
destruction of the present struc-

ture,

The entire blame cannot be
put on the structure, however.
The student government this
year has acted on the assump-
tion that the interests of stu-

': dents and the interests of ev-

JOHNSON

There has been almost uni-
versal dissatisfaction with this
year’s student government.
There is general agreement

COCO

erybody else were in constant
conflict. SGA had to act pri-
marily as a pressure group, to
stand up for our rights. This
need not be. There is no rea-
son why we cannot work with
file faculty and administration.

 

There is no reason why we can-

ParkiSon's Platform

Affirmation— not negation—
is to be the key for the year’s
activities. Affirmative ection—~
not negative response—should
be our goal.

The Grinnell College Com-
munity is bound together in the
search for knowledge. Yet, it is
this question of community
which has split this campus.
We have become involved in a
vicious circle of power tests—
not completely unlike the situa-
tion in the world with nuclear
testing. With three integral
parts to the machine, any one
of them has the ability to seri-
ously cripple the machine. This
thesis cannot be tested much
further. The machine is on the
verge of breaking down. What
is needed is a shift in attitude
on the parts of all three por-
tions involved in the machine.

 

We must all begin thinking and
acting in the best interests of
the Grinnell College Commun-

ity.

If our efforts are to be suc~
cessful, it will involve give
and take for all segments of
are community. Rules change,
individual action, and the
structure of student govern-
ment must all be considered
against the yardstick of the
communityAhy any group con-
sidering any type of action.
If flie activities within the
community are functioning
smoothly, no one need worry
about the image of this college.

Student government must be-
gin working with longer range
goals. Change does not come
about in a community of this
type overnight. if one area of
interest is temporarily clogged

not talk with them, ramer than
passing resolutions and threat-
ening demonstrations. There
are problems common to all of
us, and these things should be
worked on togetherl With antag-
onism constantly present this
year, this has been difficult,
and usually impossible. Next
year will be different.

In addition to its attitude,
student government has been
plagued with some structural
problems. The biggest weak<
ness in student government is
the incompetence and disinter-
est of large numbers of student
senators. Policy is passed with
little intelligent discussion, with
little information, and with a
poor understanding of the is-
sues involved. This could be
improved by (1) attracting
more interested and competent
people into Senate seats, and
(2) forcing senators to take a

 

 

more active role in all sectors
of SGA, rather than merely at»
tending meetings on Wednes—
day nights.

This could be done by (1)
electing half of the senators
in an lit-large race before
House Council and AWS Board
elections begin, and by (1) as-
signing each senetor to work
as an ex'officio member of
one other branch of SGA. Space
here does not allow for a full
discussion of this proposal, but
I hope to be talking with each
of you during this week.

other than a change in atti-
tude and a structural reform,
one more major change is
necessary. This year student
government has been obsessed
with rules. Virtually all of the
activities of the Senate were
concentrated in this one area.
Rules and regulations are cer-
tainly an important concern of

 

student government, and they
will continue to be, but other
things are also of concern. Stu-
dent government should bee
come actively involved in the
Southern exchange program~<
so far generally ignored. Grin-
nell should be worked into the
new NSA Student Hostel Pro<
gram. A course evaluation sys<
tem should be initiated. Under
such an arrangement, each stu<
dent makes an objective eval-
ulation of each of his courses
and professors at the end of
each semester. All of these
things are legitimate matters
for student government action.

A change in attitude, a
change in structure, and a shift
in focus —these are major
changes, but they are neces-
sary if SGA is to fulfill its role
as an effective and construc-
tive part of the Grinnell comb
munity.

_ Phil Johnson

Has Affirmative Action as Goal .

in the process, we must shift
our attention to other areas.

 

PARKISON

 

One good place to start would
be the Arbor Lakeproject—
the construction of a college re-
treat nearer to the campus.

An eye must be kept on the
national scene for activities af-
fecting us in our roles as stu-
dents. There was such an op—
portunity this year with the
tax bill and its clause concern-
ing an increased deduction for
parents with dependents in col-
lege. This clause was defeated
in the Senate by three votes.
There is no way of ascertaining
what influence letters—either
from us, from our parents, or
both—could have had on that
vote. It was an opportunity
passed by.

At this time, i feel little con-
cem for the structure of stua
dent government, per se. I
should like to see the Coil-[P

and AWS Board used more, as
informal legislative bodies to
work with the Executive Cabi-
net in formulating policies and
programs to be presented to
the Student Senate. However,
this does not preclude the pos<
sibility of change; it circum-
stances should so warrant dur-
ing the year. '

We have learned much this
year; our efforts should not be
to neglect what has occurred,
but rather to realize the full
import of what has happened.
Then we must proceed with a
new approach towards achiev-
ing our objectives. The first
and most immediately neces-
sary step is the re-establish-
ment of mutual respect between
the student body, the faculty,
and the administration.

J lm Parkison

Enforcement .tlie Crux of 56A Dilemma Assert: Pi

We must decide now wheth-
er we Want ‘Student govern-
ment, or Whether we are going
to allow it to drift into obliv-
ion. Government by students
is continually requested by all.
Yet once we received the pow-
er to govern ourselves, We de-
clined to accept the responsi-
bility to do so.

The desirability of student
government from our stand-
point is that it gives us a care
tain degree of freedom within
our community and allows us to
experience the problems inher-
ent in any democracy. lt trains
us in the responslbilitles each
member of a community must
accept and in this way further
prepares us for our adult life.

From the viewpoint of the ad—
ministration and faculty, gov-
ernment by students is part of
the constant maturation pro-
cess. It'is desirable to become
accustomed to governing and
being governed by our peers.
Naturally, the framework of
student government does not
establish itself as the ultimate
authority. The framework con-
tains»a system of checks and
balances which in our case
take the form of higher author-
ities. But this does not mean
government by students is a
mirage. We are delegated spe-
cific areas in which we can act,
and within set limits, we can
act as we wish.

The open rooms question has

become the example of a stu»
dent government to many peo~
pie. it has been established as
a type of controlled experiment.
We have generally declined to
accept the responsibility given
to us, and the repercussions
have been many, up to and in-
cluding suggesting dissolution
of student government. Unfor-
tunately. this is not an isolated
example of student failure, but
rather, it pervades most areas
of student life.

Student government is worth
saving, if for no other reason
than‘that the alternativegad-
ministrative action—is undesir-
able. We must rid ourselves of
irresponsible government, ac-
cept and enforce the rules and

restrictions as they exist today,
and change those aspects we
dislike in the future. Until
changes occur in our policies,
we ‘must BcCept the responsi»
bility of enforcing them.

The i tiative is ours to take.
We wanted government by stu-

dents. If We still want it, we
must face the reality of the
present situation and do some—

thing about it. I want student ‘

government to continue, and I
intend to assure its continua<
tion in its present form. This
involves enacting responsible
government by students and
then attempting to change it to
meet our desires. This I pledge
to do.
John Pilgrim

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