Citing the dismal state of student involvement within the College of Arts and Sciences, both slates vying for control of CAS Forum share the common goal of keeping the students informed, while maintaining contrasting platforms.
While members of the Affirmative Action slate plan to create a community service-based scholarship and establish more forums between students and the administration to address student concerns, Velvet Revolution plans to increase recycling efforts in CAS while increasing the number of free expression boards.
CAS Forum, the student governing body of CAS, represents the undergraduates of the school and, with a $35,000 budget, has more money than any other individual college government at Boston University.
Both slates said applying their leadership experience to CAS Forum will not only benefit students but also result in a more successful government. Action boasts three current CAS Forum members, while Revolution members are involved with Student Union, the Green Party, Unite and the Environmental Student Organization.
Current CAS freshman class President and Action presidential candidate Joseph Hardin, along with Nicolette Carter, currently the freshman Treasurer and Action’s candidate for that post, attended the Teaching Fellow forum earlier this semester which explored students’ problems with TFs and possible administrative solutions. They plan to hold similar conferences next year to allow students to inform the administration of problems they have.
“It would be topics important to the students: grade quotes, an extension of the TF/TA situation, cable television,” Hardin said. “When you have students and faculty sitting right in front of each other, both the students and the faculty can understand each others positions better.”
Revolution’s members said they will utilize their experience in other governments and student groups to help CAS students.
“We want to incorporate our experiences from other student groups and incorporate that into CAS,” said Revolution treasurer candidate Rachael Garrett, BU’s Environment Student Organization Treasurer and currently a Warren Towers senator.
Garrett said Revolution will begin where this year’s Union and ESO collaboration efforts ended: by implementing recycling bins on every floor of CAS. According to Garrett, the company which picks up recycled paper for CAS will pick up other recyclables at no extra charge.
Establishing a CAS student scholarship is among the plans for Affirmative Action, members said yesterday. The scholarship would be available to all CAS students who show a strong commitment to academics and community service. Applicants will be reviewed by the Forum E-board, and two winners will be given a $1,000 scholarship, members said.
“In high school, community service is usually required for graduation,” said Action’s vice presidential candidate Janna Metzler. “We would like to show that their work is recognized in college as well.”
Revolution members said continuing the Union’s efforts to add women’s and African American studies majors will be at the head of the slate’s plans for next year.
“We feel since they are two majors that will be in CAS, we will be involved,” said Leslie Cook, current Union Senate Vice-Chair and Revolution’s vice presidential candidate. “We would work with the deans to see if they will be willing to help.”
To unify CAS students, Action members said they would utilize Splash, the event that follows freshman matriculation. Metzler said getting students aware on the first day is crucial to student involvement.
“Most incoming freshman don’t really know what CAS Forum is, what we’ve done and what we can do for them,” Metzler said. “If we’re there, we can get them involved.”
Revolution presidential candidate Kyle Wackenheim said making students aware is more important than planning events.
“Before you bring students together, you need to inform them of what is going on,” Wackenheim said.
He said ridding the CAS free expression boards of clutter and putting up “intelligent” publications is one step. He said his slate would develop and update a CAS Forum website, which would include a calendar for upcoming events and a message board for faculty and students.
Among their plans, Action said they wanted to grow a garden on the BU Beach, hold a Landsdowne Street Club Night and work with the CAS Academic Advising Center to better notify students of add/drop deadlines and other academic information.
Revolution plans to investigate the possibility of adding sexual orientation clauses to certain CAS publications. However, Wackenheim said specific alterations have not yet been researched.