Under the proposal, the students would have the same rights and power as other board members, including a vote. The resolution also has been put before the undergraduate student assembly, but it hasn’tCharlie Schumer, 21, a political science and economics double major from Minneapolis who is advocating for the undergraduate student assembly to pass the resolution, said it’s vital to have the voice of students in the decision-making room.
Rutgers and Temple have a student on the board, but they don’t vote. At Temple, it’s the president of student governmentTemple “is currently reviewing the structure of student and faculty participation in meetings.” said spokesperson Steve Orbanek. Swarthmore’s president and vice president of student government attend meetings as “student board observers” but do not participate in decision-making, which is reached by consensus.
Trustees, he said, are able to take a longer-term view of what’s best for the college and not be overly influenced by daily interests, he said. Their service, usually a period of 12 years, extends “beyond the life span of the students who are inhabiting the institution at any given point,” he said. “There have been times when I’ve had silent worries about student governors participating in personnel, legal and financial discussions, but my silent worries have never materialized,” said Shapira, a former education management consultant from Pittsburgh who also is vice chair of the board at Brandeis University. “Student governors on our board consistently have understood and behaved in accordance with what is expected of all governors. ...