2007 to 2008 under Student Association President Peter Grollitsch will be the first time in a long while anybody's seen the non-incumbent SA party in power. Already, this promises to be a year of change.
A new kind of SA e-board is only the beginning, although one which keeps an open budget and holds itself accountable is nothing to glance over. It's worth noting that the iPhones you see Martin, Abraham and Grollitsch toting were paid for out of their own pockets. That's a step in the right direction.
This year will see the rise of student groups that were just getting off the ground last semester. The flatlined pulse of activism on campus seemed to get a jolt from the defibrillator with demonstrations from UB Anti-war and Students Against Sweatshops, proving at the very least that this university's students have something to say about the state of injustice.
The Facebook, which counted 34 million users worldwide in July, will become an even more present and intrusive force in our lives as it finds use by professors (who might need to know what you look like, just in case), police officers (who might just be dying to show up to your house party), employers (who might want to know if you really are a midnight toker) and anyone else who might feel like giving you a good poke.
This will be the year that builds up the coming 2008 presidential elections.
And this is just the beginning.
One unchanging factor you can count on is The Spectrum's commitment to informing the student body.
We will provide you with insight into the workings of the Student Association and major events on campus. Reviews of student-run productions and bands, summaries of undergraduate athletics, and profiles of what's new in the life of students. But with any luck, we will more importantly provide an outlet for those students on campus who need to be heard and don't have a voice.
It is not just the press releases and most lime-lit groups on campus that require the services of a newspaper. It's anyone that has witnessed injustice or history and needs the public to know.
Similarly, if there is an issue or crisis pertinent to the community, The Spectrum will continue to be the sounding board that allows students and citizens to weigh in on the matters that they care most about. For that reason, we encourage students to continue to communicate with us when anything newsworthy is heard or debated.
Not all is static with campus media this year, though- I hear The Spectrum has declared a ceasefire in the ongoing war with Generation and, to a lesser extent, Visions. Pax, you guys.
As if that weren't enough,
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
