In an effort to increase student involvement in the UR decision-making process, Dean of The College William Scott Green has formed a committee of student leaders to work with him on a variety of university issues.”The Deans’ Advisory Committee will help me and the other deans to do a better job of consulting regularly with students, of understanding students’ concerns and helping students understand how the College works,” Green said.The committee represents a joint effort between Green and senior and Students’ Association President Lonny Mallach, who laid the preliminary groundwork for the group last semester. “The committee was conceived of by Dean Green. He approached me about it, and I thought it was a great idea. We then worked together to make it a reality,” Mallach said. “It is a group which can exist for many years into the future and I see it becoming a permanent and important feature of the college.” Mallach added.
The committee has at least 20 student members, 16 of whom are leaders and representatives from a wide range of student groups. Five committee seats are currently available. “For the remaining spots, there is no particular type of student we are looking for. We simply want students who are interested in getting involved, and hoping to make this a better place,” Mallach said.
Always represented on the committee will be the current SA President, Chief of Staff, Speaker of the SA Senate, SA Treasurer and All-Campus Judicial Council Chief Justice. Other representatives include those from the Office of Minority Student Affairs, Editor-in-Chief from the Campus Times and from the three UR Greek councils. “The group represents a broad cross section of the student body. I can’t think of a better list of people to represent student concerns to the administration,” Mallach said.
Dean of Students Jody Asbury is also a member of the committee. “[Green] oversees many of the offices that affect student life and it is vitally important that he hear from students on all issues,” Asbury said. “Dean Green should be applauded for taking this forward step in developing good communication with students.”
Fraternity Presidents’ Council Chairman and senior Matt Gabler is enthusiastic about the DAC. “I am very excited to be a part of [the committee] because I feel that the more student and administration interaction there is the better our lives as students will become,” Gabler said. “I also feel this will be a great opportunity for me to represent the Greek community and voice any of our concerns in a very receptive setting,” he added.
Students who are not members of the committee are also pleased with the prospect of more student interaction with the Dean’s Office. “The committee shows that in the future [Green] will take even more student opinions into consideration,” sophomore Mohini Gurme said of the DAC.Senior Santo Marciano was also pleased. “It’s nice that he’s making a visible effort to listen to student issues,” Marciano said.
The DAC has already met once, and while the meeting was primarily introductory in nature, a few particular issues were discussed. “We surveyed some immediate concerns, including problems with transportation and course scheduling. We’ll take up other issues as they emerge,” Green said.
Applications for the five open spots on the DAC may be picked up at the info desk in The Hive and at the Dean of Students Office in Wilson Commons. Any undergraduate interested in being part of the committee is encouraged to apply.
Severs can be reached at asevers@campustimes.org.
