Zack Goytowski, ASUI Senator | Guest Voice
Last year the student body voted to amend the ASUI constitution to district the ASUI Senate. The stipulations for that districting, which were not voted on by the student body, were then written into our rules and regulations. The model given for districting was based on whether or not the student was a member of the Greek system. The model allotted five seats for Greek students and five seats for non-Greek students, providing that those elected can get 80 percent of the votes that their other district receives. Otherwise their district is nullified.
The problem with this system is that it does not provide true districts for the students, which is what they voted for when they amended the constitution. Not only that, but districting based on whether a student is Greek or isn’t Greek is an ineffective model for districting when according to the University of Idaho Institutional Research Center 66 percent of students live off campus.
In the last few weeks there’s been a lot of controversy over recent legislation I proposed to the senate to redistrict the ASUI Senate. Some felt it was too soon. Others stated that the legislation would get rid of guaranteed representation of non-Greek students. As you can see there is currently no guaranteed representation for any group on campus.
The goal of this legislation would be to shift to a collegiate model of representation, as Washington State University and Idaho State University are currently utilizing. By doing this we would have districts that effectively represent the entire student body. We would also be able to get more students involved who normally would not have by working with professors and deans to recruit students to get involved in ASUI.
The only cost that would be associated with this model is that it would involve expanding the ASUI Senate so that each college would have two representatives while still maintaining an at large district so students could run outside of their college. The solution to the problem of more senators to pay is simple: Reduce senate paychecks.
Last week I withdrew this legislation due to its controversial nature and the volatile atmosphere that resulted in it becoming highly politicized. Since this bill’s removal ASUI has been working to prepare surveys, which will be distributed across campus to gather further student input. From your opinions we will then determine how we shall proceed. If there is enough student support we hope to have a special election in the fall.