As ubiquitous as a student newspaper is at universities across the United States, so is student government. As a body, the Clemson Undergraduate Student Government bridges the gap between students and administration, presenting our issues directly to them. In practice, they determine how seriously the administration responds to student concerns. Without CUSG, our student body would not exist in the way it does now.
Recently it has become apparent through conversations among members of CUSG that senators are losing interest in the daily affairs of student government.
In a steering committee meeting last week, Senate President Newell noted that many student senators had voiced their various levels of apathy to him. “There haven’t been many individual members who have been passionate to bring things to the floor, and I think we need to investigate where this is coming from,” said Newell at the Oct. 2 meeting.
A lack of interest from senators is concerning. Without new ideas or legislation, we are stuck with the status quo. If senators are uninterested in what they’re doing, the impact they have is bound to diminish.
What could be causing some of this apathy among the Student Senate? One reason could be the seeming lack of competition for a senate seat. Healthy competition drives a healthy election system. In theory, the more people competing for a seat, the more those efforts would be made by those trying to get involved. During student body president elections, it’s common to see candidates handing out stickers and pins for their campaigns. Why is this level of promotion not seen for the Student Senate elections?
Issues like this don’t just appear overnight; this situation must have been building for some time. CUSG must push through this since students would have a significantly diminished voice without them. Without them being fully invested in what they do, how do we know they are listening to us as students?
This editorial is the collective opinion of The Tiger’s Senior Staff. Every two weeks, all members vote on a topic and stance, then assign a writer to pen the editorial. We discuss issues relevant to the Clemson student body and broader topics that relate to the University.