Within the University of Idaho’s student affairs policies and the Student Code of Conduct there is a Statement of Student Rights, but ASUI President Max Cowan thinks there’s something missing — a Statement of Student Values. “We’ve been discussing issues related to the Statement of Student Rights and the Student Code of Conduct and I think that conversation has been a very negative one,” Cowan said. “It sets the bar pretty low because it’s saying what you can’t do and I think it’s important as a university with our aims being to grow as students, become better citizens and better members of our communities, we need to aim higher than just not doing what is wrong and we really should be looking for what is right.”
Cowan said he thinks the best way to put a positive spin on the university policy changes is including a section that outlines values that are commonly held by UI students.
“The purpose of a Statement of Student Values is to find a way to come together to define what’s important to us, what we expect from each other and to put together a concise way to share that with one another,” Cowan said.
The new ASUI project is in full swing after Cowan made the first attempt to reach out for student input last month.
“We held a leadership summit and we had over 40 student leaders in attendance,” Cowan said. “We had representatives from all different clubs and intramurals and we basically sat down to discuss issues of what’s important to us.”
ASUI Vice President Taylor Williams attended the summit and said student leaders generated a pool of 88 values ranging from personal values to professional and academic ones.
“When talking about values, it takes a lot of personal reflection, which was really good for me,” Williams said. “Some of the values that I think are the most important to me as a student are academics, opportunities — or having the ability to access opportunities –and relationships or community connections.”
Williams said many of the student leaders in attendance listed similar values, among many others, that will better represent UI students if solidified into an official Statement of Student Values recognized by the university and included in policies.
“Creating a Student Statement of Values is a clear way to represent how we as students believe we should act as well as what we value,” Williams said. “Hopefully by having this statement, we would all be on the same page of what it means to be a Vandal. It would also help when working with administrators or faculty and staff and allow students to have a clear stance on things based solely upon our values.”
Cowan said the project is on hold while ranking ASUI members sort through the pool of values to combine duplicates and come up with the official language.
“For example, a commonly held value by a lot of the students is education. But, there were also a lot of students who listed learning as a fundamental value. These kind of discrepancies are things we need to work through,” Cowan said.
Cowan is partnering with ASUI Director of Health and Wellness John Nuhn to make a concrete list of values to present to Faculty Senate later in the semester.
“(Cowan) and (Nuhn) will be compiling information from the summit,” Williams said. “And then will be trying to create a statement based upon the most listed and ‘popular’ values. They also mentioned hosting another leadership summit in the future.”
Cowan said there is a great possibility of another summit open to all students, because student input is what the project is centered on.
“You can’t make a Statement of Student Values without listening to what students have to say,” Cowan said. “Students from Greek houses, dorms and off-campus — it’s important to me that all students are included. I want to include students in the process of changing UI policies and this is their chance to do it.”
Amber Emery can be reached at [email protected]