As the 2009-10 academic year comes to a close, the editorial board at The Spectrum felt it was necessary to take a look at the performance of the Student Association in the past eight months and offer ways in which everyone can help it improve.
Before you stop reading this article, at least ask yourself one simple question: Do you understand what the SA actually is? Many students might have the wrong impression.
The SA is the voice of the undergraduate student body at UB and the largest student government in the SUNY system. Using funds supplied by the Mandatory Student Activity Fee, the SA is responsible for providing activities for students through clubs, organizations, and planned events. SA officials are elected by the undergraduate student body and serve as representatives of the collective student interest.
As the undergraduate student newspaper, The Spectrum often reports on the activity of the SA. We therefore feel it is the editorial board's responsibility to provide commentary at year's end.
The SA accomplished much this year. Current SA president Ernesto Alvarado promised to improve safety on campus during his campaign, and major crimes such as rape and robbery appear to have gone down this year. This is perhaps due to SA's addition of a 24-hour busing system from North Campus to South Campus.
The busing measure was one of SA's best accomplishments, and it should be continued next year.
Alvarado's administration also saved money by cutting Visions magazine from its budget. Taking the return of Generation into account, this was another good decision, as students now have a choice of which publications to read.
Despite this success, this year definitely cannot be called a smooth ride for the SA.
Things got off to a bad start at the beginning of the fall semester when then-president Hassan Farah was recalled following a scandal in which Farah was accused of punching another student. The incident indicated instability in the SA, something that a government at any level should strive to avoid.
Financial transparency is another thing that Alvarado promised during his campaign, and although the SA budget is available online, information such as the pay of elected officials appears to be missing. Also, the budget is not updated as regularly as it should be, leaving students to guess, perhaps inaccurately, what the SA spends on certain events.
One of the biggest issues plaguing the SA may not be the SA's fault. There appears to be a general lack of awareness and sense of apathy among students about events going on around campus.
To add to this lack of awareness, next year's SA administration plans to cut the SA's promotional department, which leaves SA officials doing promotional work on their own time in addition to their regular duties.
If the SA wants good turnout at its events, it needs to make sure the students know about the events in the first place, and an effective promotional department would be very helpful in that regard.
Though the SA has obviously not gotten through the year with a flawless performance, we must remember that the undergraduate student body elected the officials working there. Before complaining about the decisions made by the SA, take note that only 2,293 students voted in the SA elections. Additionally, less than 200 people have currently applied for SA jobs, which is less than in years past.
There needs to be greater awareness amongst the students about the SA in general, but more specifically about the elections. Considering the controversy surrounding this year's election, perhaps the entire electoral process needs to be re-constructed.
Regardless, all students at UB have the power to cast a vote in the SA elections or to run for office themselves if they feel that strongly about making a change.
