Councils Assert Power

In a year marked by tailgating controversy, diversity initiatives, and a flash access logjam, the interplay of Columbia's undergraduate student councils served as a stark reminder that Columbia's four undergraduate schools aren't always on the same page.

Twice, it seemed that Barnard's Student Government Association was out of step with its fellow councils-first on the Baker Field alcohol policy and later with its proposal for universal swipe access to undergraduate dorms. But SGA was not the only outspoken council-in February, the Engineering Student Council came out strongly against Barnard's intercouncil proposal for flash access.

Meanwhile, the General Studies Student Council struggled to cultivate school unity in its own diverse and disparate student body as the Columbia College Student Council played up its activist credentials; the CCSC led the charge against the revised Baker Field alcohol policy in the fall and grappled with an election agenda centered on financial aid and diversity in the spring.

Adding to the disarray was a lack of student interest. According to a Spectator poll conducted among 337 respondents in November, three-quarters of the undergraduate population at Barnard College, Columbia College, and the School of Engineering and Applied Science could not name a single member of their respective executive boards. Still, nearly two-thirds of that population indicated that it felt well represented by the three councils-a sign that policy snags and cross purposes have not dimmed the student body's faith in student governance.

By far, the year's triumph of council cooperation was the Baker alcohol boycott in October. Despite SGA's decision not to participate, the combined effort of the three remaining councils was instrumental in overturning the administration's tight restrictions on alcohol at football games. Meetings between Athletic Director M. Dianne Murphy and the three council presidents-Michelle Oh, CC '06, Stephen Davis, GS/JTS '06, and Tom Fazzio, SEAS '06-directly precipitated the policy change.

But whatever momentum existed between the councils during the Baker boycott seemed to dissipate as the year went on, dashing hopes for a consensus on universal dorm access until fall 2006 at the earliest. The SGA- and GSSC-backed proposal was met with rejection by ESC-which cited safety concerns-and neutrality by CCSC-which failed to reach a consensus on access, even in its explosive final meeting.

Internally, the councils' policy efforts met with mixed results.

In a departure from past years, SGA focused more on Barnard-specific measures than on intercouncil collaborations. Under the leadership of M.A. Moutoussis, BC '06, the council pushed for the creation of BearLink-a Barnard photo directory-revamped the structure of its own ranks, and mandated sexual assault and diversity training for leaders of all SGA-funded clubs.

SGA was less of a presence at campus-wide events like Glass House Rocks this year because, according to several SGA members, past attempts to reach out to CCSC and ESC were not always successful.

On the other side of the street, ESC grappled with the nature of its own electoral process. In April, a school-wide referendum on whether to make the ESC president a popularly elected position-rather than an internally chosen position-netted 67 percent approval for the change. However, citing low voter turnout, ESC overruled the outcome, keeping the process internal for at least another year.

ESC also made strides toward completing Athena Wiki-the proposed all-purpose Web portal for Columbia undergraduates-voiced its support for a new pass/fail policy sponsored by CCSC, and discussed measures to introduce more recycled paper to Columbia's campus.

For GSSC, the year was marked by a number of proposals to improve the sense of community for a geographically and demographically diverse student body. The council drew up plans for a more inclusive orientation program, pushed to open locker space in Lerner to off-campus residents, and integrated GS students into Lerner Pub, the semesterly social gathering in Lerner. Likewise, school unity was a dominant theme in this year's council elections.

Apart from its role in the Baker protest, CCSC made significant strides on social and student-life issues. Over the year, CCSC led the second Glass House Rocks, approved a measure to reward energy-conscious students with dining dollars, and succeeded in raising print quotas for undergraduates.

In the spring, CCSC took a more policy-oriented tack, founding a committee to keep students abreast of expansion developments in Manhattanville and beginning to form a working relationship with Stop Hate on Columbia's Campus. This year's elections followed suit, as the issues raised by SHOCC and the Financial Aid Reform Coalition took center stage in the executive board race.