The beauty of starting a new year is that you get to do exactly that: Start anew.

The Student Union is sitting on the hot seat this semester. Whether the issue is transportation, construction, grade deflation or whatever else, the Union needs to get together and focus on one problem at a time without worrying about parliamentary procedures. Creating a dialogue, as Union President Brook Feldman wants to do, is beneficial, but at some point, the Union must bring up issues to President Robert Brown and Dean of Students Kenneth Elmore. As the link between the administration and the students, this is the Union’s duty.

Also this semester, the Student Life Task Force, which is part of the Faculty Assembly Council, must bring the guest policy back into discussion. If it takes too long to get this amended, the very people working to get it modified will not benefit from possible changes.

Along with the theme of change comes the need to find permanent leadership for six colleges. Interim deans by design are supposed to maintain the status quo, but this is not what the university needs to consistently evolve. Success at a university is all about productivity. Stagnancy hinders potential for great achievements.

Other colleges should look at the College of Arts and Sciences to learn how to properly conduct a dean search. Via the school’s website, it is keeping its students informed of the decision and putting them in an active role. Colleges should always be open with students because the university exists as a means to serve them.

Unlike the six colleges that lack leadership, Massachusetts is not without a new chief. The people of the commonwealth elected Deval Patrick because of his strong pledges. We hope promises he made in his acceptance speech, including “put[ting] 1,000 new cops on the beat,” “implement[ing] the new health care law from the perspective that health is a public good” and “restor[ing] local aid so property taxes come down,” were not empty.

In addition to the modifications to Massachusetts’s leadership, the U.S. government also saw change on Election Day. The newly inducted democratic Congress must remain active. The House of Representatives has already passed bills to raise the minimum wage to $7.25 and remove limits on stem cell research. While President Bush has threatened to veto recent legislation, the new Congress has proved it wants to get the wheels of progress moving.

The new year and new semester provide optimism and hopeful resolutions. It is up to the leaders on all levels to turn optimism and promises into better lives for their constituents.