SANE FRESHMAN GOVERNMENT

The prevailing dissatisfaction with the present system of Freshman elections has been voiced in a communication which appears below. The idea of voting by dormitories is a very valuable contribution and could be developed most successfully under a scheme slightly different from the one proposed. Let each dormitory elect one member to a "Freshman Executive Committee," which would have control over all Freshman affairs. The chairman would be the executive head of the class and would represent it on the Student Council.

The committee would propose to the Student Council Committee on Freshman Affairs the names of men to be chairmen and members of the Finance, Jubilee, and Smoker Committees, and chairmen of the Red Book departments. The chairman of the Finance Committee would serve as treasurer in charge of the class finances. The Student Council Committee would consult with the Executive Committee in advance, to advise them of what types of ability were required for the various offices. In case of an appointment which was clearly not suitable, the Student Council Committee would request an alternative proposal.

In this way the present Freshman election farce would be done away with, because no one would be voting for a man he did not at least know by sight. The affairs of the class would be more centrally and efficiently managed, and the first year men would have the advice of a responsible group of upper classmen in choosing their committee heads. Supervision by the Committee on Freshman Affairs would insure the appointment of men qualified for their offices rather than the election of men who are prominent, but not well suited for the more specialized work of a committee chairmanship, a danger which would be present if the chairman as well as the executive committee were voted for.