Chancellor John Wiley's decision to slash off-campus rent for a handful of student organizations is extremely complex. Student organizations were first notified of this reality in fall 2004 and were given two years to find alternate, on-campus locations. Now, two years later, the Student Rights Coalition forms in response to Wiley's memo and outrage ensues.
The SRC sees the issue as one of shared governance—it believes Wiley violated that principle when he changed the rules so segregated fees could not fund off-campus rent, which was actually a proposal by the Board of Regents.
If student groups thought this decision to be unfair, then why did they wait until the absolute last minute to form the SRC and protest Wiley's actions? The protesting student organizations knew the rules and had time to make adjustments, and now they are facing the consequences of their own inaction. But this brings us to the next contentious issue: on-campus space.
The affected student organizations do bring up a legitimate point. There is practically no space on campus to house their offices and their failed attempts to find space now leads them to fight the new policy. Hopefully, within a few years this unfortnate problem will be alleviated since the Student Activity Center, as well as provisions in the Student Union Initiative, will provide much needed space for student organizations. Also, with the SAC and the new Welcome Center on Regent Street, space may be freed up in the Red Gym as well.
The SRC needs to keep its eye on the prize and focus on the quest for funding off-campus rent—bringing in claims of a violation of shared governance takes away from this goal. It seems logical that student segregated fees would go toward funding organizations located on campus, just as it seems logical these spaces should be provided by the university. Arguing that organizations should be able to use student money to go wherever they want is absurd.
In the meantime, however, a new solution must be found. If Wiley truly wanted to be fair, he would extend the exemption and allow segregated fees to pay for off-campus rent until more space is available. It is the fault of the university, not these student organizations for not adequately providing a suitable on-campus location. The groups should not be punished for such a lapse.
