By snoadmin
“No taxation without representation” was the rallying cry American colonists used during the American Revolutionary War to declare their grievances towards the British Parliament.
Students of the Cal State University system should use a similar cry when it comes to the search for their new chancellor.
“No selection without student representation.”
The special committee in charge of seeking out the next CSU chancellor is made up of eight members.
Of the eight members, only one is a student.
The lone student, Jillian Ruddell, goes to CSU Chico. She is a multicultural and gender studies major who minors in woman studies, with plans to add another major in political science.
Active in many campus organizations and academics, Ruddell also received the William Randolph Hearst/ CSU Trustees Award in Outstanding Achievement in 2010.
Ruddell is serving her second year in her two-year term on the Board of Trustees. This is the first time she will have any voting power.
However, as qualified as Ruddell is to be a CSU student representative, is her one voice enough to steer the special committee towards selecting the best chancellor for CSU students?
In the CSU system, there are more than 400,000 students enrolled across 23 campuses.
We, as students, are the biggest stakeholders in this decision.
Yet, our voice is represented by one-eighth of this search committee.
This doesn’t add up.
In order to have accurate student representation, the Board of Trustees should add more qualified students to the chancellor search committee.
Students are the ones paying the tuition and fees that help fund the CSU system.
In fact, if it weren’t for our desire to learn, the Board of Trustees wouldn’t exist in the first place.
Each student faces different trials and tribulations with their education.
Narrowing our strong voice down to one representative ignores who the CSU should be listening to.
Adding more students to the committee would not diminish the role of other trustees.
With their experience in the CSU system, the trustees have a better understanding of what qualities the new chancellor should have. With less experience students may not necessarily understand everything the chancellor does.
But even with less experience, qualified students should contribute more to the chancellor selection process.
The student trustee has limited weight in the vote for new chancellor, making the seven other trustees the brains of the organization.
It is the CSU’s mission to serve its students. But it is a disservice to have so few students involved in such a big decision.
On Thursday, the chancellor committee will have an open meeting to listen to the thoughts and ideas of CSU students, faculty, parents and constituents.
During this meeting, Ruddell will need to listen very well. She will hear the many differing voices from her fellow students.
Whether or not she will be able to synthesize students’ desires and concerns to produce an appropriate chancellor for the CSU is yet to be determined.
Whatever the case, we will still only have one-eighth of a say.
