While innovative ideas are important, equally important is the familiarity with the process involved in implementing them. The three pairs of candidates running for Student Assembly President and Vice President all clearly demonstrated a shared love for the College of William and Mary and a commitment to serving her students.
As much as we students pride ourselves in our innovation and independence, however, we cannot effectively implement changes in school policy and large-scale initiatives without support. In the SA, there is a vital need to collaborate with administration in order to create an open, productive dialogue, and to ensure sustainable changes are made in the students’ best interests.
Each pair of candidates has held leadership positions and has worked with administration in a variety of areas of campus life: Trevor Parkes ’15 has served as President of the Interfraternity Council and Carlton Smith ’15 has served as President of the Residence Hall Association. However, while Colin Danly ’15 spoke of his and running mate Kendall Lorenzen’s ’15 experiences communicating with administration in a variety of realms, he also highlighted their collaboration with administrators in a specifically SA-related context.
As it can already be a long, involved process for students to work with the administration toward change, representatives who already have overcome the learning curve of collaborating with the administration toward affecting SA policy can be a huge asset to the students they represent. Additionally, such established relationships can help representatives determine which administrators would be best advocates of specific types of policies and initiatives. By having representatives that have an intimate understanding of administrative collaboration, students can benefit by seeing the fruition of their labors in a more immediate way, initiating positive change more swiftly and productively for the Tribe.
Email Andrea Aron-Schiavone at acaronschiavon@email.wm.edu.