EDITORIAL: Achieving diversity

Allocating University CouncilAllocating University Councilseats outside of UA electionsAllocating University Councilseats outside of UA electionswould be more representative.Allocating University Councilseats outside of UA electionswould be more representative.______________________________ This time, Council referred the question of the UMC seat to two of its internal committees, which will make a recommendation in the fall. We sincerely hope the UMC's request is denied. Before the rhetoric begins to fly about our stance on this politically charged question, let us emphatically state that we are absolutely in favor of equal representation for all undergraduates on University Council -- and of the presence of as many viewpoints as possible at Council's roundtable discussions. But the way to achieve this diversity of opinion is not by granting one particular group preferential treatment. Instead, we advocate the separation of elections for the undergraduate seats on University Council from the general, annual election of Undergraduate Assembly members, so that motivated, concerned students -- not resume-padding wanna-be politicians -- will get involved. In theory, UA members represent all undergraduates. If they actually did so, the present system -- where Council seats are awarded to the UA chairperson and UA members who run for them -- would not be problematic. The UMC has noticed the UA's non-representativeness, but so have other campus clubs, groups, factions and individuals. While many students have written off the UA as an ineffectual waste of time, laughable in the administration's eyes, they also know that Council's deliberations and recommendations still carry some weight with College Hall.