Over the last semester, the University Senate's Interschool Governing Board has made progress in its effort to create cohesion among a diverse community of students. The IGB fosters the development of interschool groups that do not fall under the jurisdiction of the other governing boards, and has admirable plans to increase publicity and membership. The board should not delay in realizing and expanding upon these developments, and students should take advantage of the benefits that the board offers.
In order to be eligible for IGB funds, a group must have members from two or more schools, at least one of which must be a graduate school. These groups have the potential to connect undergraduates with graduate students who share similar interests but possess more experience in particular fields. Moreover, these interschool groups can create a more integrated atmosphere on campus by encouraging students with similar goals to meet and work together. Bringing together students from different parts of the University allows many cultural and service-oriented groups to expand their events and activities. Despite its potential, though, the IGB currently holds just a handful of groups under its purview and has made seemingly few efforts to publicize its goals—the Web site, for example, is long out of date and difficult to find.
IGB must uphold its efforts to raise awareness of the opportunities it offers, in addition to encouraging more students to utilize its services. Both IGB and students must make a concerted effort to create new groups that can fit within the interschool label, and members of already existing groups should make sure their organizations are properly categorized. While the IGB need not be as large or as broad as the other governing boards, the only way it will be able to have an impact on the sense of community on campus is by establishing a tangible presence—though it started funding groups in 2007, many students remain unaware that the board even exists. The IGB's plans for the spring include recruiting support from student senators, running advertisements in print and online, and holding a social event for its current group leaders. Maintaining and elaborating on these measures—such as holding additional events to recruit potential groups—will help encourage students to operate under the IGB.
Student groups are integral in bringing together students with similar interests. The IGB has the power to go beyond the traditional definition of student groups to unite students who would normally never meet, yet this goal will not be fully realized if the board has so few interschool groups to facilitate. Both students and the IGB must work together to make this governing board worthwhile.
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