VSA president aimes high, invites student voice

The newly-inducted Vassar Student Association (VSA) President Sam Charner ’08 intends to bring the voice of the students to the forefront of the institutional agenda.

“I wanted to continue on the work that was done last year,” Charner said. After years of discussion, the structural revisions to the VSA Executive Board are finally in place.

“There was a lot of structural change in the VSA and the VSA Council specifically, expanding the role of council to do more than just allocate money, and be more involved in the policy of the College, and advocate more heavily for student interests,” said Charner. The Board’s hierarchy is now more horizontally organized and all of the new vice presidential positions are now equal in power. “None of them are more special [than any other one],” he said.

Charner is no novice to student government. As a freshman, he served on the Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Committee. He also helped review and rewrite the VSA constitution and bylaws to make them easier to understand.

During his junior year, he was elected Organizational Executive, a post that has since evolved into the position currently known as the Vice President of Activities. This past spring, he decided to run for President of the VSA Executive Council.

Among Charner’s primary concerns are next year’s renovation of Davison House and the subsequent relocation of its 191 students. One of the VSA Council’s top priorities is to work with the College to find a solution for the inevitable housing crunch. Though there are several ideas under consideration, the College has no concrete plans as of yet. Charner, asked when such a plan ought to be put in place, replied, “Now!”

There are other, broader items on the agenda for Charner and the executive board this year that look beyond the immediate future. Both Dean of Faculty Ron A. Sharp and Dean of the College Judy Jackson will be up for institutional review by a student committee in the next two years. Charner will also be a member of the Self-Study Review Committee that is preparing for next year’s application for re-accreditation to the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.

Above all, Charner believes that student input is needed to improve the quality of the VSA Council’s representation of the student body. “A lot of times students will come up with ideas, and something will happen in the College,” Charner said. “A policy that will be discussed somewhere that students are really interested in, and that will push you on a track.”

Though next year’s schedule is still in its early stages, Charner hopes to increase the number of student surveys throughout the year to encourage student involvement and ensure that VSA representatives make frequent trips to the residential houses.