My college career was permanently altered when I had just barely arrived at Tufts. Along with over a dozen peers, I ran for a freshman seat on the Tufts Community Union Senate. I had begun following current events at Tufts the April prior to my arrival, so I knew a little about the current issues, but I had little actual experience on which to base an election platform. What I did know after just two weeks at Tufts, however, was that I was in awe of my classmates, wonderfully talented people who before even entering college had done exciting research, raised tens of thousands of dollars to fight cancer, and even become accomplished musicians. I suspected the admissions committee had placed my application in the wrong pile, but since I was here, I knew I had to try and help to make life just a little bit easier for my amazing classmates.
I have rarely been accused of popularity, but I managed to win election as a TCU Senator from the Class of 2006. I was reelected each following April, and I am now finishing four complete terms in office. Perhaps more than anything else at Tufts, the Senate has left an indelible mark on my life. I will leave office knowing how to effectively work with administrators, faculty and students, and with my understanding of educational policy, finance, student services and logistics forever altered. The most important lesson I have learned, however, is about the importance of free thinking. I have often witnessed well-meaning individuals imposing artificial constraints on the breadth of their policy proposals. My work on the Senate will ultimately be remembered only in dusty archives, but if I could perpetuate just one strand of experience, I would like future student government officials to remember that they have the power to do a whole lot of good.
I learned the power of creativity through many different experiences on the Senate. One good example came in working to save the Naked Quad Run. Over the last decade, the annual Naked Quad Run has become an increasingly popular event, and during my freshman year, the crowd had become large enough and intoxicated enough to suffer several serious injuries. Tufts clearly had to do something to avoid a potential tragedy in the future, but the last thing anyone wanted was to try and destroy what for years had been a quirky and enjoyable tradition. I participated on the committee that worked hard to provide safety for an event that officially does not exist. The solution, as most students remember, was to create a concurrent event, aptly named the Nighttime Quad Reception. After three winters of operation, it is clear that the Reception dramatically improves safety for students who feel like going out for an evening jog.
Perhaps my most challenging endeavor on the Senate was the struggle to modernize the Culture Option. For several years, students had been advocating for the inclusion of Asian American and Latina cultures as options for Culture Option courses, arguing that African American and other US-based cultures already counted. Some professors agreed, while others believed that no American cultures should count, and still others felt the very existence of a Culture Option detracted from the importance of learning a foreign language. Tensions ran high, and some professors who felt strongly about the subject refused to discuss a meaningful solution until compelled to do so by an agitated administration. I worked with faculty members and another student to propose changes, and we were able to update the curriculum in a way that made the inclusion of Diaspora cultures in the Culture Option acceptable to a large majority of the Tufts Community.
After working on the front lines of successful projects that many people had insisted were impossible missions, it was only natural for me to make big plans as I ran for TCU President at the end of my junior year. The most well-known part of my platform was my proposal for the creation of a stipend fund to support students undertaking unpaid internships. My critics denounced the idea as infeasible, but I saw an important opportunity as the university was defining its goals for a large capital campaign. Even without the title of President, it turned out not to be at all difficult for me to convince administrators that the establishment of an internship stipend fund should be a fundraising priority. Apparently, administrators were in turn able to sell the idea to the Omidyars. The deadline for applications to receive a stipend this summer is Friday.
My experiences show that the TCU Senate is capable of far greater things than what might normally be expected from student government. We are relatively unique among universities because student government is heavily integrated into the larger institutional framework at Tufts. The creation of a student government is actually mandated by the faculty in its bylaws. The Board of Trustees writes a million dollar check to the Tufts Community Union every year to fund student activities. Administrators actively seek out our assistance in making policy decisions, and they tend to take us seriously when we come to them with concerns. Most other student governments pale in any comparison of their influence.
My challenge to future members of the Senate, therefore, is to fully realize the potential of the office and not to be afraid to think beyond traditional boundaries. You have been entrusted with representing the student body, so what will you advocate? How can you make life just a little bit better in your corner of the universe? What can you do to help facilitate success for some of the most promising young leaders in the world?
That last question has often kept me awake at night. I cannot know objectively whether I have made any difference to my classmates, but I do know that they have had an enormous influence on me. My fellow seniors, you have blessed me with the honor of representing you on the Senate throughout our journey at Tufts. You have taught me how to work, how to play, and even how to dance. Most importantly, you are my friends, and I will never forget the wonderful things you have done for my life. Thank you for believing in me.
Rafi Goldberg, a senior majoring in political science, has had the privilege of representing the Class of 2006 on the TCU Senate since the beginning of his freshman year.
