Unlike the freshman class, there will be no election to begin the formation of the new sophomore and junior class councils. After three separate interest meetings for both classes, there were only enough students to field executive committees for both councils.
?We?re expecting [the sophomore and junior class councils] to start small with the sophomore and junior classes because they are not new to student government,? said junior and cabinet member Matt Fearnside. ?We?re hoping to get the executive boards up and running and then they can start getting the word out.?
Fearnside, who was chosen by senior and Students? Association President John LaBoda to be the lead cabinet member in implementing his class council idea, said that one of the main difficulties the cabinet is facing with the councils is doing all the recruiting.
LaBoda said he was unsure if the apparent apathy of the sophomores and juniors is reponsible for the disparity or heightened freshman interest. In any case, he said he wasn?t concerned.
?We really think once they get the executive board up and running, the people will come,? he continued.
Wednesday night the leadership of the new freshman class council was set with Jesse Bailey elected president, Jack Voorhes elected vice president of finance, Arlene Perlata elected vice president of communications and Megan Schubmehl and Brandi Davis elected vice presidents of programming.
LaBoda said the councils will have no set purpose.
?The [councils] are going to do what they want to do,? he said. ?They can do leisure programming or academic programming. It?s their perogative.?
Fearnside said that the freshman class council was following that line of thinking and had several differing ideas including an idea to increase interaction between classes by planning a social and a lounge type area with a television and some chairs in the Gilbert Hall Lounge.
Executive councils for the sophomore and junior class councils will be chosen this weekend. The sophomore council will meet tonight at 8 p.m. in the Ruth Merrill Center while the junior class will meet Saturday, Oct. 20 at 1:30 p.m. in the Ruth Merrill Center.
Hildebrandt can be reached at thildebrandt@campustimes.org.
