A semester in staff editorials

As the Class of 2009 prepares to exit the 116th gates one last time, Columbia's remaining students face a semester of changes when they return in the fall. But before looking ahead to a new academic year, it is timely to look back at the semester that has just finished. Since January, the editorial board has supported policies that it deemed constructive to the University and has served as an advocate for students on issues ranging from academics to student life.

This semester, the editorial board celebrated the appointment of Michele Moody-Adams as Dean of Columbia College, looked forward to the scheduled 2010 completion of the Interdisciplinary Science Building, and acknowledged vast improvements in study abroad opportunities for SEAS students. However, the board also called for improvements in housing and course-registration methods at the college; demanded increased transparency and communication across the university, whether in Columbia University Information Technology, the Center for Career Education, the Class Day speaker-selection process, professor evaluations, or health services; and expressed students’ dissatisfaction with the University’s policies on alcohol and recreation.

By editorializing, members of the editorial board sought to effect actual change, whether that change was merely in the mindset of students or took the form concrete measures toward a goal. They encouraged residents of the Living and Learning Center to take advantage of the social opportunities of their residence hall, and they reminded seniors of the various cultural and social opportunities in the city. They urged CUIT to respond to the spamming of CubMail users by corporate solicitors, and they called for more effective communication in fire alarm test warnings. They promoted environmental stewardship by asking campus organizations to cut back on flyering and by recommending standardized lower coffee prices for users of reusable coffee mugs.

Such calls for change were often acknowledged by those in authority. For example, Dean of Student Affairs Kevin Shollenberger’s May 7 letter to the student body explaining how the University plans to use Lerner 6 responded not only to the efforts of many leading campus organizations in this regard, but also to the concerns the board expressed in its March 27 editorial, “Fill the space, fill us in.” By fulfilling its role as a investigator and commentator on issues of concern at Columbia and in the Upper West Side, the editorial board acts as an important body in holding all members of the community, whether administrators, instructors, or students, accountable for their actions or inaction.

With the conclusion of this semester, the editors look ahead to next year. The upcoming semester will be an important one for Columbia and therefore for the editorial board. With a new provost and new deans at Columbia College and the School of Engineering and Applied Science, next fall will certainly be a period of potential and change for Columbia. We look forward to the continued work of the editorial board next semester in acting as a mouthpiece of the student body in commenting on the direction Columbia will take in the year ahead.