Less privacy in Senate

The most recent Senate resignation, which was only announced behind closed doors, has some up in arms about the body's secrecy. Senate president Melissa Carson claims that she did not believe Jonathan Gold's resignation letter last week to be "official" and that she wanted to respect Gold's privacy, so she held off the announcement until the traditional non-public portion of the Senate meeting.

While it remains to be seen how Carson did not consider a written letter of resignation to be official, she had no right to withhold such information because of any kind of privacy concerns. Though Carson does not need to volunteer further details about the reasons for Gold's resignation, it is unquestionably her responsibility to announce the resignation itself. As Gold chose to hold a public position on campus, the fact of his departure from the Senate cannot be hidden from the public.

Although the issue may seem a minor point, it does indicate more basic problems with the function of the Senate. First, the need for a closed-door portion of Senate meetings appears to go against its democratic underpinnings. However, this is not the US Senate, and being a Senator is not a full time job for anyone at Tufts. It is probably beneficial to be able to blow off steam without campus press around, and if the students had more time, they would certainly be able to do this less conspicuously (i.e. not right after the general meeting).

But that's really as far as it goes. The Senate should not be making decisions, announcing resignations, or handling any other matter of public interest in such meetings, and students can rightly feel untrusting of the Senate after this incident. It is important that Carson communicate quickly with students about the resignation announcement.

Senate outreach is an issue of perpetual concern at Tufts. However, if the Senate began clearly advertising the office hours of its members and its willingness to hear from the general student population at the start of its weekly meetings, it would be a huge start. The more students feel in touch with the Senate, the more effectively the body can act to their benefit.