VSA and Dean of College assess committees

Ilyse Kramer Guest WriterThe Office of the Dean of the College and the Vassar Student Association are assessing committees on which student representatives serve. This includes both student-run and joint committees. Joint committees are run by students, members of the faculty and administration.

The reasons prompting these reviews are because “following the Town Meeting and recent developments on campus, we were worried about student voices in committees. We want to make sure that the student voices are strong and are being valued in all committees,” said VSA Secretary Petra Stankard ’05.

Previously, all campus organizations submitted reports about their activities, which were reviewed at the end of each semester. However, after recent events, a more thorough investigation of committees is underway. Each committee is being evaluated separately based on their own concerns. The goal of these reviews according to Stankard “is to make sure the work of all committees is clear and effective.”

“Committees not functioning well are those that do not meet on a regular basis and those in which student voices are not valued. The purpose of the reviews is to pin-point the committees that are not working effectively,” said Stankard.

“It is important that students see what is going on with the College. We will let the student body know what we find out and take our next actions from there,” she continued.

To voice questions and concerns about these reviews, e-mail VSA Vice President Margaux Knee ‘05, the point person on the committee review, at vsa_vp@vassar.edu.