I was surprised to read portions of the Go Party’s platform that pertain to the University System of Maryland Student Council. The platform describes the USMSC as an ineffective structure for representing students from the state’s 11 campuses. As council chairman, I was taken aback by the Go Party’s description of the group I lead, considering I have never seen any of the Go Party candidates attend a single USMSC meeting or, for that matter, have any affiliation with the important work we have done and continue to do.
To provide some context, the USMSC was created in 1988 at the establishment of the system. Along with the councils of university presidents, university faculty and system staff, we constitute the shared governance structure within the university system. Anyone who has followed our work would know the student council plays a crucial role in ensuring the 180,000-plus system students are heard by policymakers in both Adelphi and Annapolis. As chairman, I serve on the Chancellor’s Council along with university presidents, other council chairs and system senior leaders. Last semester, I sat on task groups that studied the proposed merger between your university and University of Maryland, Baltimore, and concerns raised by students, which I conveyed, were included in the system’s final report to the General Assembly.
We were very active during the 2012 legislative session in lobbying for higher education. We testified at budget hearings, lobbied for textbook affordability and formed a coalition of student leaders around the system that attracted the attention of lawmakers. We participated in the CapWiz campaign to oppose the $20-million proposed budget cut by the House of Delegates, and with our help, more than 21,000 emails flooded the inboxes of legislators. CASA de Maryland coveted our support for the DREAM Act, and we passed a unanimous resolution opposing referendum efforts to repeal the law. We have advocated to include graduate employees in family leave policies throughout the system, and officials in Adelphi are studying the proposal today. The Board of Regents – the 17-member governing body that oversees the university system – approved our proposal to grant regional higher education centers’ members full voting rights on the USMSC, ensuring that the voices of all students are heard and represented.
The USMSC plays a vital role in protecting shared governance in the state’s public higher education system. To portray the council in such an unfair fashion demonstrates the Go Party’s ignorance of how to effectively advocate for students at the state level.
Emmanuel Welsh is chairman of the University System of Maryland Student Council and a junior political science major at Towson University. He can be reached at emmanuelwelsh@gmail.com.
