This summer, I experienced what was both the most disturbing and most encouraging event I’ve seen at the university. Thanks to Facebook and The Diamondback, some of you have probably heard that late-night study narrowly escaped cancellation in July. The administration had decided to look at cutting back late-night hours at McKeldin Library to avoid a budget deficit. Unfortunately for them, something they weren’t expecting happened: Students found out.
One former late-night employee received an e-mail from the administration encouraging her to find a new job, as the service would be closing. Curious – even though she no longer worked there – she checked in with her former bosses and found out it was true. The administration was going to shut down late-night study without consulting students. Dissatisfied with the possibility of losing such a valuable resource, she contacted members of Students for a Democratic Society, a student group she was involved with.
What happened next was spectacular. A Facebook group was created, and hundreds of members joined overnight. SDS held meetings to form a strategy and invited students from the Student Government Association. SGA President Jonathan Sachs and his assistants showed up at the house of an SDS member (OK, fine, my house) to plan resistance to the administration’s proposed policy. Students sent hundreds of e-mails to the provost’s office, demanding action.
The administration had no choice but to respond, and agreed to hold a student forum. You wouldn’t think students would show up at the sixth floor of McKeldin Library at 7 p.m. on a summer weeknight, but we were there in force – and we wanted answers.
Students regaled administration representatives with stories about classes passed and grades saved. When Interim Library Dean Desider Vikor (who was not responsible for the decision and seems perfectly nice, if a bit out of touch) asked what studying in the dorms was like, he was nearly laughed out of the room. Some students even threatened civil disobedience if the service was cut.
About a week later, the administration announced late-night study would continue for the foreseeable future. What the ordeal demonstrates is the kind of power students have when we choose to exercise it. We are the university, and when the administration forgets it, it’s our job to remind them. What disturbs me is how the administration behaved. Administrators claimed they had made no decision, but they had no plans to consult students before making one. Had it not been for one former employee, we wouldn’t have learned this essential service had been cut until the first day of classes. During the meeting, administrators refused to admit a responsibility to consult students on decisions that them. I’m not sure they fully learned their lesson.
Overall, saving late-night was an amazing display of students’ willingness to get involved. It showed the administration we won’t sit down and have our decisions made for us. It showed them more than just a few elected representatives would show up to a meeting. It showed them who’s boss. Now we have to make sure they don’t forget.
Malcolm Harris is a sophomore government and politics major. He can be reached at harrisdbk@gmail.com
