Senate begins to move on after year of conflict

Despite a year of tension and internal conflict, the Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate appears ready to move on and start making changes according to its campaign promises from last year.

"The main thing is just to get things done for the students," TCU Senate President Chike Aguh said.

Aguh was nominated in one of the most controversial and confusing presidential elections the TCU Senate has ever seen. The list of presidential candidates, which originally consisted of Randy Newsom and Joe Mead, changed several times after Newsom rescinded his nomination.

This unprecedented move sparked multiple re-nominations, raised questions of constitutionality, and changed the election date. The resulting confusion seemed to hinder the election process.

"I don't think enough people knew about any of the candidates to feel like they [were] able to make a reasonable decision," senior Charline Han said last year. "I didn't even know the vote [had] happened already," added senior Jonathan Portny several days after last year's election.

The low voter turnout further suggested that very few students were able to make strong, educated decisions about last year's candidates. Many senators expressed hope that this would be the year in which the Senate finally accomplishes its goal of forging a closer connection to the student body.

"I have full faith that [we] will go even further beyond where other senates have gone," senior senator Newsom said. "This Senate truly wants to be inclusive and not the pompous and elitist administrative puppets I think people have seen in the past."

Aguh has yet to undertake the projects upon which his platform was based, such as increasing the Tufts University Police Department (TUPD) safety network, enhancing the diversity component in the Freshman Orientation, or developing his program to give students credit for extracurricular activities, TC UNITED.

However, Aguh has begun working on several projects he hopes will help close the gap between the TCU Senate and the students. He will begin by continuing several projects from last year.

A major accomplishment of last year's Senate was the revision of the community representative system to provide the student body with more direct representation in the Senate.

This "unprecedented compromise between members of the Tufts community" opened the representative system to any TCU recognized organization that petitions using standard procedure, which entails a 250-signature petition and a referendum at the next regularly scheduled presidential election, explained Sophomore Senator Rafi Goldberg in a Senate press release last year.

The community representatives are important, says Aguh, because they "represent communities that feel neglected by the Senate and the University" but that are nonetheless deserving of representation. However, he admitted that not everyone is totally happy with the compromise.

"[The community representative system] is going to be a hot topic," agreed sophomore Senator Dave Baumwoll who co-authored the Outreach Responsibilities Bylaw that created the new system. "It is going to be scrutinized because it is in the early stages."

Baumwoll hopes to use Websurveyor, a software program that allows senators to collect student opinions and concerns via email and polls, to gauge student satisfaction with the changes.

The Senate purchased the Websurveyor system last year and Baumwoll predicts that its initial poll will be conducted within three weeks and will most likely gauge opinion on issues including Greek life and curriculum.

Aguh has also generated several new ideas about how to focus Senate attention on issues that directly affect the student body. Revitalizing the Greek system, which Aguh admits is in "pretty bad shape right now" is a central concern. Aguh is also committed to the "preservation of Tufts traditions," such as the Naked Quad Run.

He hopes to foster new activities in which the entire student population can be involved, such as last Friday's Fall Ball. Aguh is optimistic that the free dance party, which he created and planned this summer, will become an important annual event.

"Right now, I feel [the social scene] is being curbed by the administration and some non-student members of the Tufts community," Newsom said. "I plan on meeting with as many people as possible so we can figure out how to improve the Tufts social scene."

The 2003-2004 TCU Senate has yet to officially meet, effectively making policy implementation impossible. As the year progresses, Aguh will have the chance to work with the body to implement or dismiss issues raised during his campaign.

Last year the Senate was hindered by internal conflicts. In the fall semester, Senate Historian Allison Clarke motioned to impeach then-Vice President Andrew Potts. Then, in February, when TCU President Melissa Carson resigned, controversy erupted over how to replace her. The conflict was eventually resolved with Potts fulfilling the President's duties but not assuming the position itself.

Despite this rocky history, many senators are optimistic that this year's Senate will be different.

"That is in the past," said Joe Mead, Senate Vice President. "All of the senate is looking forward. Everyone is just concentrating on making this year the best it can be."

Aguh agrees. "Petty grievances have no place here," he said. "The main thing is just to get things done for the students."