After not one freshman candidate for the Undergraduate Assembly could pass a Daily Pennsylvanian survey on the basics of Penn student government, the Nominations and Elections Committee last night finalized the formation of its new education committee with the election of its leader.
The NEC, the branch of student government that oversees nominations and organizes elections, last night elected College freshman Eli Schlam as the vice chairman of education.
Schlam will be responsible for educating old, new and prospective members of student government and the University community about the structure and importance of student government.
The new position comes in response to a DP survey showing that most of the 38 freshmen who ran earlier this month for the UA could not name the UA chairwoman or the University's provost, and few could name UA committees or other branches of student government.
"I'm very excited to lead the effort to inform and educate the University student body and therefore create a better University community," Schlam said.
At a meeting on Oct. 22, the NEC decided to require students interested in running for office to attend an information session before they will be allowed to declare their candidacy.
During the information session, the NEC members will review the vital components of student government to ensure that each candidate knows the responsibilities and expectations of the office for which he or she is running. The information session will also serve as a forum for candidates to clarify any misunderstandings or confusions they have about the elections process and student government.
NEC Chairwoman Anne Hankey, a College senior, said the NEC will ensure that each candidate attends the information session by making it the only opportunity for candidates to receive the essential candidate packet with election process guidelines and requirements.
Schlam said he also plans to organize more social programs to foster communication among the members of all six branches of student government.
But another goal, and one more difficult to achieve, is to educate the entire student body. And Schlam isn't yet sure how to tackle that problem.
He said he will sit down with his committee and with the NEC to brainstorm, and is considering airing the weekly meetings of the Undergraduate Assembly in UTV-13.
"More people watch UTV than you think," he said. "Even if it's just one or two people though, they might get interested and tell friends about the UA and come to the UA meeting. It's all about educating people so they get involved."
And Hankey agrees that educating the school's leaders and its students are of equal importance.
"What's the good of having a well-informed student government if the student body isn't equally knowledgeable?" she asked.
NEC members say the DP survey may have brought the problem of a lack of education about student government to the forefront, but they have known about the issue for a long time.
Though the survey focused on freshmen running for office, the lack of knowledge is a big issue for even seniors who have held elected positions for four years at Penn.
"A lot of older members on the NEC were sort of shaky as to what all the branches of student government do and how the University works," Hankey said. "They know what their branch does, but they're unclear on how the system works as a whole. If everyone were better educated, we could get a lot more done."
