UC Demands Role in Review of Student Gov

In anticipation of the upcoming Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS) assessment of the role of students in College governance, the Undergraduate Council passed a resolution last night asserting its authority to recommend or appoint students to the review committee, which will include five students.

The review is still in the planning stage and will in part evaluate the role of the UC itself.

The UC legislation calls for the selection of students with a wide range of experience to fill the five slots—in particular, it would limit the number of current or former UC representatives to two.

“One of the reasons we should pick the delegates is that we will do a better job than the administration at picking a diverse, well-rounded delegation,” said UC Representative Michael R. Ragalie ’09, who introduced the resolution.

It is unclear whether FAS Dean Michael D. Smith, who will have the final say on the makeup of the committee, will factor the UC resolution into his decision.

Some present at the meeting expressed concern about the way the resolution would be received by the administration and the student body.

“I think it set up the UC to again be embarrassed when the administration totally disregards what the UC has to say,” Student Activities Committee chair Jon T. Staff V ’10 said after the meeting.

Jon Staff said that he hopes the review itself will clarify the UC’s authority to appoint students to student-faculty committees.

Former UC delegate Zander N. Li ’08, who is an inactive Crimson editorial writer, said he opposes the motion because it might make the review look like “an inside job.”

“The question is really how can the UC best serve students,” Li said.

Neuroscience Professor John E. Dowling ’57, who will chair the review committee, was a featured guest at last night’s meeting.

Dowling, who helped found the UC 25 years ago, expressed concern that if the UC selected the student committee members, the review process might be de-legitimized.

“I don’t want anyone to feel that they have been excluded or that the makeup of the committee has been biased in some way,” Dowling said.

Dowling, a former Leverett House Master, said the ideal committee might include a UC representative who had served on a student-faculty committee, a House Committee member or chair, and a student not on the UC.

When asked if he would support a recommendation that included people known to be critical of the UC, Ragalie responded, “I don’t think I would vote for a delegation that didn’t have at least one of those people.”

UC President Matthew L. Sundquist ’09 struck a conciliatory tone yesterday.

“I think it’s a matter of building on the conversation that we had tonight, and we need to continue that conversation,” Sundquist said.

After the meeting, Ragalie said of the review that he wants “people to see the UC is just as committed to this as the administration is and the student body will come to be.”

—Staff writer Chelsea L. Shover can be reached at clshover@fas.harvard.edu.