AS responsible for more than meets the eye

By Christie Genocho

Here's what I knew about Associated Students (AS) a week ago: we elect the officers, they have a seemingly endless supply of colored chalk, and their forums are occasionally broadcast on channel 13.

As impressive as this knowledge is, the recent elections inspired me to find out more; after all, how can I be expected to vote if I don't know what they do? Or for that matter, whether they do anything at all?

Beyond admiring the handiwork of chalk-art virtuosos and occasionally glancing at fliers proclaiming "It's your AS!" on Benson's bulletin boards, I had never consciously seen the fruits of our student government's labors. As far as I could tell, it wasn't even a real organization; it might as well have been just a ruse to dupe naive undergraduates into believing they were toiling under some form of student leadership.

Well, here's the truth: not only is AS a real organization, but it has actually been working assiduously to improve student life.

Officially known as Associated Students of Santa Clara University (ASSCU), AS is the undergraduate student government organization that mimics the national government in its trifurcated form: it's divided into the Executive, Legislative and Judicial branches, and incorporates 60 students as well as 90 clubs.

"We organize some events, in order to address student concerns, but also serve by working with administrators to make sure that the student voice is heard in all decisions that affect students," said incumbent president Kristin Love.

All three branches have made unheralded strides towards fulfilling these duties. The student senate has collaborated with businesses like Stuft Pizza, Yum Yum Tree Cafe and Mondo Burrito so that students will be able to use their flex accounts off campus. They have also masterminded a Benson tent system (the tents are those little folded pieces of paper propped up in the middle of the Market Square tables) that promotes timely Senate and AS events.

"A process has also begun to place monitors in many locations in Benson--hopefully suspended from the ceiling--up and downstairs," said current senator and president-elect Taylor McClure, "so that students, while eating in Market Square or walking through to get to class, can view what events are happening on campus on any given day."

In addition, the senate has successfully hosted forums promoting discourse with the Santa Clara Police Department and discussing the futures of the Residential Learning Communities (RLCs), Orradre Library, Benson, Bart transportation, KSCU, the Activities Programming Board (APB), Information Technology (IT) and a plethora of other issues.

The Executive Cabinet, consisting of the president, vice president, senate chair, chief justice, and representatives from the service, development and finance departments, created programs such as DogEars and Bronco Bus and advocated Neighborhood University Relations Committee (NURC) meetings and barbecues.

They have provided activities such as Junior Night at Charlie Blair's, Senior Ball, Off-Campus Housing Information Week (the 'Got Housing? Campaign'), mayoral debates designed to introduce students to the candidates for Santa Clara city elections and supported over 90 clubs throughout the year.

"I am amazed at our student organizations and all of the time and effort that people put into these," said Love. "We have such a diverse range of RSOs [Registered Student Organizations] and this is really where you see AS doing a great job at serving all of our students. Our clubs are welcoming and providing a wonderful service."

Class officers have organized events at Mondo Burrito, University Chicken and Stuft Pizza. They are also responsible for the Casino nights, according to McClure. Class justices, headed by chief justice Mike Byer, have contributed by launching the Free Legal Advice Program (FLAP) to serve spudents.

Given the amount of progress AS has made in the last year, they seem to receive an incongruous amount of recognition and credit for their achievements.

"They try, but it's easier to get behind them if we know what they're working for," said sophomore Mike Lysaght. "It would be nice if at a particular time when they had specifics they could give them out, if they were pertinent to certain issues."

Freshman Andrea Brayko articulated the problem succinctly when she said, "It's hard to say what I want them to do when I don't know what they do already."

Not enough people know why AS is here. Love admits that one of biggest obstacles facing the student government is "it's difficult to communicate with all students and to serve a diverse student body with huge differences in political opinions and needs on campus. Also, sometimes it's difficult to ensure that ASSCU is a political organization, rather than simply planning fun events."

Granted, it isn't easy to serve and inform thousands of students on a university campus. As it is, voter apathy has left the candidate pool a bit shallow, with only one candidate running for many of the offices. But the best way to improve participation in campus events is to improve communication between the student government and its constituents. If students feel unified under an active leadership, they will more likely take advantage of the resources provided.

AS remains uncredited for much of its efficacy; it has done its best to facilitate greater interaction and involvement on campus, and continues to foster programs that are conducive to enhancing student life.

If McClure and vice president-elect Nathan Iglesias seek to amend these communication problems and improve relations with the student body, they need to do so now. They were off to a good start with the free Starbucks coffee they peddled on election day, they certainly earned my trust, but they need to maintain that level of connection with the student body if they hope to be successful.