Recently, I suggested that Guilford students don’t attend Senate meetings because they are boring.
Unfortunately, I made this statement at a Senate meeting. In response, a Guilford senior stood up and pointedly told me that she made an effort to be at every Senate meeting, and that she was determined to be involved with Senate, “even if it is boring.”
Obviously, I made an impression; a week later, she was still complaining about “that guy who called Senate boring.”
So who’s right? Why does the majority of the Guilford community avoid the Senate meetings, and is there any reason for them not to?
Perhaps one could draw parallels to our national Senate system where senators are elected and serve based on their ability to serve the public interest, without direct input from the public at their meetings. Even at a local level, the idea behind having a representative government is being able to have your opinions represented without having to be physically present.
But this isn’t about the national level of government, or the local level. This is about the Guilford College level, where attending a Senate meeting isn’t about making a political statement, so much as staying informed. While attending Guilford Senate meetings doesn’t directly translate into active involvement in campus activities, it does present a unique opportunity to look behind the scenes of Guilford college.
The core of any Senate meeting is budgetary; that is, various clubs and on-campus organizations come before the Senate requesting money to put on activities that usually are open to the entire campus. Surprisingly, these proposals are one of the most interesting parts of Senate: listening to individuals justify why their event deserves money. Everyone from marathon runners, to the yearbook committee, to WQFS has come to Senate for help.
But the really fascinating Senate moments spring out of having non-Senate members in attendance, like when one student asked Senate to look into why so many people are moving off campus, or the debate that ensued over which television channels to drop and which ones to pick up in their place. It’s mind-boggling how many Lifetime fans there are out there.
Unfortunately, this presents a sort of conundrum. People don’t attend Senate meetings because they think the meetings are boring. Senate meetings are boring because people don’t attend them. By moving from Boren Lounge to Milner Lounge and offering free pizza and soda, the Senate was able to bolster their regular attendance by one person, who left after the TV debate was over.
Folks, this is ridiculous.
Perhaps part of the fault lies with Senate itself. Maybe they should move their meetings to a more visible place than behind the out-of-the-way doors of Boren and offer free pizza and soda at every meeting. It’s worth considering.
But more likely, low attendance is a result of students not knowing when the meetings are held, or maybe even not caring. I can’t believe so many people are apathetic; I hear way too much complaining for that to be true.
So let’s make this easy. Everyone who has something to complain about should complain on Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m. in the Boren Lounge. If that’s too much work, you can seek out the 2004-2005 senators and complain to them personally. A.Q. Abdul-Karim, Laura Wigard, Christopher Lett, and Ali Stewart all want to make Guilford College better. You can help them by telling them how. It’s like just like complaining, but constructive. They’re good people, and hygienic to boot.
Once more: Wednesdays at 8:00 PM in Boren Lounge. Try it once before you leave for summer. You might get hooked.