Ideas are the wheels of change, but without good communication and successful execution they remain ideas. The ASUI Student Fee and Tuition forum is an idea that fell flat.
University of Idaho students have no problem expressing dissatisfaction with increases in tuition, and in particular, ASUI’s use of student fees on Facebook. But if students want to impact university decisions, they need to take the initiative to be proactive and voice their opinions in the flesh.
The purpose of the forum was to inform students about how their tuition and student activity fee dollars are spent. It was an opportunity for students to engage in conversations with ASUI President Samantha Perez, University of Idaho Provost Doug Baker and Executive Director of Planning and Budget Keith Ickes. Students could have asked questions about the proposed 6.1 percent increase in tuition for the 2012-2013 academic year and their input would have been taken into consideration.
But only about 20 students participated in the forum, most of them ASUI senators who were required to attend.
Perez audited the various departments receiving funding from the student activity fee because of concerns about how the money was being spent — an issue students complain about every year, specifically in regard to funding for athletics.
Students care enough about their money to engage in long conversation threads on Facebook, but not enough to spend a few hours listening and understanding all the components that go into developing a university budget. Of course, being educated about all aspects of a complex issue is hard work. It’s much easier to stay at home and spout off from behind the protection of a computer screen about the misuse of our money instead of participating in a forum that might have made a difference.
It’s understandable that there may have been scheduling conflicts and students had to work or attend class during the forum. Maybe students just didn’t know the forum was taking place. But poor attendance at the forum seems to be indicative of a more problematic issue — the inability of the university to communicate and a sense of apathy among students.
UI and its students need to work as a team to make an idea like the student fee and tuition forum successful. Teamwork requires good communication and trust in your teammates — communication to inform students when an event like the forum takes place and trust that students will show up.
The ASUI Student Fee and Tuition forum was a good idea. With a little more communication and effort it might become a great idea.
— EE