Last night, the Associated Students of Madison held two of three planned listening sessions to discuss the first draft of a revised constitution. Committee members were quick to criticize the current state of ASM in proposing a three-tiered governance system.
Chief among their concerns were poor accountability for elected and appointed officials. The committee made it clear that they intend to address this by instituting a popularly elected president and clearer lines of authority"" within ASM.
Another major concern with the current state of ASM was poor communication with students - and as a result, student apathy toward ASM. If last night's session, where only a dozen students were present, is any indicator, student interest in governance on campus is extremely low. Although committee members believe that holding a popular election for president will allow for media coverage and notoriety, more students must be made aware of these proposals. The lone e-mail advertising these sessions clearly didn't gather enough student interest for a representative amount of feedback.
While centralizing their bureaucracy and electing a senate that emphasizes outreach with student constituents will provide greater accountability, these efforts will mean nothing if students still view ASM as worthless. If the committee members seriously desire student feedback, they must spread the word now - through campus media and increased advertisement on campus - to reach the student populace.
Last spring, this editorial board supported ASM's proposals with ""cautious optimism."" This support still stands, but November - when the constitution goes up for vote - will be here soon, and ASM needs more than a handful of interested students to impact the university.
