John Parker advocates for Student Senate representation for regional campuses

John Parker, Liberal Studies major, presented to the GVSU Student Senate on 16 October 2008, advocating for Student Senate representation for the Traverse City, Holland, and Muskegon Regional Campuses. The regional campuses, prior to his passionate and articulate plea to the Senate, were without representation.

Text from his full speech follows:


Good evening. My name is John Parker. I am a Liberal Studies major with an emphasis in Political Philosophy and Peace Studies. I am a Junior here at GVSU. I serve on the Executive Board of the Liberal Studies Student Organization as Treasurer and am a member of the Francophiles club. And at 27 years old, I am also very much a non-traditional student.

First, I would like to thank President Trombka for allowing me to speak at this time as my class schedule prohibits me from attending the public comment sessions. I would also like to offer my congratulations to the entire Senate on a very active start to the year.

I transferred to Grand Valley in the summer of 2007 and I spent my first year at the Traverse City Regional Campus. It was because of that experience that I am addressing you here tonight. I have come this fall to the Allendale campus for a variety of courses that were not offered in Traverse City. I was delighted to discover the vibrant student life here and the vigorous Student Senate. I admit I walked through student life night with a slight daze at all of the possibilities.

However, in regards to the organization before me now, there is something missing. There is an absent voice from this Senate. And for the students of the Traverse City, Muskegon and Holland campuses this silence is palpable. Reading the profiles of the Senators online I noticed, if I am not mistaken, and I hope that I am, that not a single Senator currently serving on this Senate represents the students from Traverse City, Muskegon or Holland. Are there any Senators here present that do represent these students? If so, then I stand corrected and I will yield back my time.

If not, then for tonight I will be their voice. This absence violates the Senate Constitution which states: [You], the members of the Grand Valley State University Student Senate, being determined to ensure the conveyance of the student voice to university governing bodies, the administration and the Board of Trustees in matters of institutional policies. Where has this determination been to represent the voices of the Regional campus students? It is claimed that any student may become a senator. Your constitution only stipulates two requirements. First, that the student must be currently enrolled at GVSU in the semester they serve; and second, that they maintain at 2.0 GPA, 2.5 for officers. However, I wonder if the Student Senate application discriminates against non-Allendale and non-Pew campus students? The application inquires if the student can attend General Assembly meetings on Thursdays, commit to two hours per week in the office, and attend a weekly committee meeting. So, while the constitution states that any student may apply, when a student does it becomes obvious that only Allendale or Pew campus students need apply.

But, you may ask, we do not know if these regional students have ever asked for representation. To this I would argue, where in your constitution does it say that a student must ask for representation? Think over your answer to this question carefully. For I am certain that your intentions are to represent the entire student body and not select campus groups. And being full tuition paying students from the regional campuses I know that their needs and voices are unique to their experience of Grand Valley.

But, you may ask, what can we do for students on regional campuses while we are here in Grand Rapids? The benefits are these: first and foremost that the Student Senate will finally live up to its constitution and represent every tuition paying student at Grand Valley State University. Second, by giving a voice to the regional students, this allows the university to grow by offering more opportunities for students at these campuses to create their own student life, and perhaps do so in conjunction with those of us in Grand Rapids. We are about to embark on sustainability week. I say that it would be better if sustainability week were to be on all five campuses. The Student Senate can be the organization that provides unity.

But, you may ask, what about the weekly meetings? What about the time commitments? To this I respond: does the Senate have no telephones? Can they requisition no internet cameras? Are the technological hurdles so great that students could not attend these meetings through teleconferencing or video conferencing over the internet? The technology exists to unite us, it simply needs to be turned on.

Thus, you may imagine my consternation when I read the Student Senate story on the front page of the October 13th issue of the Grand Valley Lanthorn. And I quote, Students can expect to receive optimum representation of their interests at Grand Valley State University within the next three weeks as the Student Senate expands. I say to you all this evening, that unless that expansion includes Senators from each of the Regional campuses, then that statement is an error.

The time to fulfill your obligations is now. Do not let another year go by with tuition paying students having their voices go unheard. You must reach out to these campuses. You must have elections there. You must not let these students log on to Blackboard another semester to see a link for Senate elections that has no nominee that represents their voices, their issues, and their university. You must amend the constitution so that the regional campuses have their right to representation forever protected. You must show the students not only at Grand Valley State University but the entire state of Michigan, that we know a little something about democracy.

I will leave a copy of these notes with you today. I will also be sending copies of these notes to each regional campus, and to the offices of President Haas and the Grand Valley Lanthorn. Also, in this accreditation year, until I see progress on this issue, and until these students have elected their senatorial representation, you can expect to see me here at every General Assembly meeting as representative of these unheard students.

I understand I have given you much to think about. For some of you, you may have never even heard of these campuses before tonight. Others may have known but suffered from the old adage, Out of sight, out of mind. I understand that how I am approaching you is rather intense. But do not misinterpret that intensity as a comment on this Senate. Rather, let this intensity be a signal to you of the magnitude of this situation. There are students who have paid just as much tuition as you and I who are being forgotten, ignored, or possibly both. Now that you know about this, will you act on it? This is an opportunity for you to achieve something that no other Senate has before.

I look forward to working with you on this issue. Thank you again for providing me the time to address you this evening.

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