This year's student representatives to the Board of Trustees were elected Sunday night. Seniors Dave Baumwoll, Laura Fruitman, and Cho-Yau Ling were chosen from a group of ten candidates.
The trustee representatives were elected by the Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate. All but two of the candidates were seniors; the others were both freshmen.
The winners will attend Senate meetings and meet with a designated trustee committee three times during the year. At the February board meeting, the student representatives will present proposals for change to their trustee committees.
Baumwoll, last year's TCU President, will work with the University Advancement committee. Fruitman will work with the Administration and Finance committee, and Ling will work with the Academics committee.
At the election, each applicant was allotted 15 minutes: current senators reviewed the applications for five minutes each, the applicants were asked to make five minute speeches, and then senators asked the applicants questions for the remaining five minutes.
Senators deliberated for about two hours before deciding on the three winners. Committees were assigned after the winners were picked. Before the discussion of applicants began, TCU President Jeff Katzin instructed senators: "We want to see their vision. We're not electing them to specific seats."
According to Katzin, all of the candidates were serious and qualified. "There were some close calls," he said.
After the election, the winners summarized their presentation to the senators.
Baumwoll said he will use his position to improve alumni relations. "That's one of our major shortfalls," he said. He compared the University to a taxi, with students as paying passengers and alumni as fuel. Tufts, he said, has a "major fuel deficiency."
He recommended the creation of alumni clubs or lounges in different cities. "It makes a huge difference to have a venue where they can gather in an informal setting," he said.
Fruitman plans to focus on increasing connections between students and faculty from different schools in the University. She said last year's closure of No Name Cafe in the Fletcher School was a step backward in the connections developed between undergraduate and graduate students at Fletcher School lectures.
She also said she plans to work on increasing the availability of research positions for students. This interest was motivated by her experience doing research in psychology and sociology.
Ling said he will propose changes to the international relations program. "If Tufts is going to compete with American universities and those abroad, it has to promote a reinvestment in languages and IR," he said.
He also suggested the creation of more narrowly focused majors in international relations, such as international development and international economics.
In his presentation to the Senate, Ling said he wanted to work with the Administration and Finance committee. "I was a little shocked when I got the education side of it, but they thought that because my platform is what it is, it made sense," he said.
All three candidates expressed enthusiasm about their new positions.
"I think it's great that there's a student voice on the Board of Trustees," Fruitman said, "After all, this is our university, and I'm really excited to represent the student body."
