THE MICHIGAN DAILY >uncil Candidates Discuss Major Issues ~C Opposes HUAC Film, Bias Clauses Government Council's **::.' r action on several is- .4 .:. . ; , .e past semester. y >}F: ,( untl passed a m otion > k . ' **"<"":"".*'..' *'***' **"'° > ~ '"' .ll csororities- and rno { Y ' > file with the Univer-- tement and one inter- i >f all regulations, writ- k riwritten, which affect ..:;.:: :tion of members.Y 1 "Operation Abolition"" :nned for distortion and " ly accusing students of activity. 3' ' ! endorsed the idea of a rence on the University nd ated its president to contact y and administration mem- n order to establish an all- sity planning committee. major area of future con- will be with membership se- i. The committee on men- p selection practices of stu- organizations is authorized ivestigate complaints and mend solutions to the Coun- IC faces the problem of act- irly and effectively on these mendations. roposal to make allowances e University regulation re- g all student organizations omit membership lists each ter is now under scrutiny. A roups have objected to the , because of the possibility Lure intimidation based n e associations. Council may also consider sals for structural reorgan- which have been suggested esident John Feldkamp, '61. Hare Method The Hare system, by which Student Government Council members will be chosen Wednes- day, is based on a quota system of votes. The quota is determined by di- viding the total number of valid ballots cast, by one more than the number of Council seats avail- able; in this election the quota is one-ninth of the nmber of bal- lots; The next whole number, dis- regarding fractions, larger ,than the resulting quotient is the num- ber required for election. All candidates who meet the quota on the first ballot are de- elared elected, and the lowest can- didate is dropped. After the first ballot, the votes above the quota of elected candidates are declar- ed "surplus." A random selection of surplus ballots is used to re- distribute the votes. The surplus votes of this selection are given to whichever candidates are list- ed as second choice on the victor- ious ballots. All the votes of the lowest can- didate are redistributed. A new quota is set fore the sec- ond ballot.-This quota is deter- mined by, dividing the still circu- lating ballots by one more than the number of seats still avail- able. Those who meet the quota are declared elected' and the process is continued until all'seats have been filled. COUNT NIGHT-The end of campaigning for Student Government Council elections is on Wednesday night when student volunteers .count the final votes. The Daily and WCBN have representatives taking notes as the counting progresses until all the seats have been filled. Votes are sorted into piles for each candidate. Each receives all ballots on which he was first choice. Each receiving a pre-set quota is then automatically elected. ONE, TWO-Count night workers wade through stacks of ballots as the process of selecting Student Government Council members by the Hare System proceeds. The method, which involves re- distribution of ballots and continual changing of quotas, lends itself to small elections. It allows interests group to achieve a form of proportional representation through ranked voting. r >tential Me in bers Give inions on. cope of 06 ' hn Ma- or, 1961 MICHIGANEN- ; Sphinx Honorary; 01s and Colleges Editor, MICHIGANENSIAN; Al- Sigma Phi Fraternity. role of Student Govern- Council is a vital one. SGC student legislative, body of at educational institution. University should not be as a divided community of unnecessary duplication among campus groups. The proposed conference on the University is a sound idea. Stu- dents, administrators, and faculty should meet together to face the problems before the U'niversity. Realistic appraisal is a must. SGC members can do much to as- sist the undertaking and evalua- tion of such a conference. SGC's chief shortcoming is that many of the students do not ap- preciate or respect the role of the Council. This is a matter of public relations. It is SGC's role to bold- ly participate in all activities of concern to the academic commu- nity. If these concerns occur on other campuses in different parts of the country, it may well be the Council's role to examine the per- tinent activities. At the same time SGC must de- vote sufficient time to local is- sues. The local aspects of the na- tional trends and issues are cen- tral to Council action. The Coun- cil, to receive greater support of the entirecampus, must make it clear "that these campus type problems are receiving due con- sideration. The role and activities of SGC must be articulated more clearly and distinctly to the cam- pus. I would propose that summar- ies of current study on local prob- lems be sent to the housing units. These could be enclosed wit the mailing of SGC minutes. Although, a seemingly small thing, this and similar public relations releases would go a long way in making the entire campus aware of SGC and its problems, discussions, and accomplishments. Junior Interfraternity Council President; committee chairman for IFC; Chairman of the Uni- versity Affairs committee of SGC; ex-officio member of IFC executive committee; South Quadrangle r e pr'e s e n t ative to Inter-Quadrangle Council. In discussing or evaluating the philosophy ,behind effective stu- dent council endeavor I believe it would be 'best to avoid vague gen- eralities or fineline statements. Instead I will briefly outline what I deply believe to be the crucial is- sues for student debate; in addi- tion to this, I will propose specific ideas of my own which should pro- vide an accurate picture of what I would define as the scope of council action in the ensuing months. Membership Committee: The valid criteria for membership is personal merit or. inidividual po- tential. This ' committee should work firmly with the problems of bias and discrimination according to race, creed or color. Establish- ment and formulation of educa- tional programs designed to im- prove certain attitudes are its mandates. However, it must also be sensitive to the nature of the organization it is working with (e.g., the interdependency of lo- cal and national affiliated groups) --and therefore proceed with dis- cretion. Education and under- standing are the key concepts' here. Regents Bylaw 8:11: quite simply, I believe that this ruling banning Communist speakers from the campus isunnecessary and re- strictive. Allow these people to par- ticipate in the market-place of ideas-perhaps we might arrange future debates and make this the condition for outside speakers. , Student Rights Committee: the idea that students have a place to go to air dissatisfaction with the University should be studied more closely. Attention might be given not only to students' rights on this campus-but also their re- sponsibility as mature adults. Student Government Council must not only express coherent opinion to the academic communi- ty at large or to student national groups, but must also serve as a liaison between University policy- nmaking agencies and the Univer- sity student community. This lat- ter function I believe has been overlooked to the effect that many local campus problems of import- ance have not been followed through to beneficial results. SGC must invest more time and energy here pertinent to the concrete needs of this campus. I would sug- gest future areas of attention. Curriculum Committee: I whole- heartedly propose the addition of a representative student to speak and possibly vote on the faculty- dominated committee. This com- mittee studies changes in curri- culum needs and such a student's voice-now lacking-would be ex- tremely beneficial in its ramifica- tions for the campus. International students: many of these individuals are adrift in campus life due to overwhelming may be partially attacked through greater integration of these people into the residence halls. More con- tact is needed-this idea would stimulate such contact. SGC is definitely a matter of utmost concern for all. A Coun- cil member must not only be re- sponsible to his constituency but also to himself-to his own digni- ty. Above all, SGC must sustain its full purpose pertaining to both particular campus needs and uni- fied expression on national mat- ters relevant to our existence., A.H. Shah Elected member, SGC; Chair- man, International Students Association, d e 1 e g at e, 13th United States National Students Association Congress; delegate, Experiment in International Living Mid-west Conference; delegate, Michigan State= Uni- versity United Nations Assem- bly; former Editor-in-chief, PAKISTAN STUDENT; campus correspondent, ASIAN STU- DENT; correspondent and staff' guest writer for The World Campus, Magazines S* * s Students in'institutions of high- er learning have a legitimate common concern with all issues which affect them in their role as students. This is one of the basic premises of .the Student Govern- ment Council. All issues 'arising on the campus have an immediate bearing upon all students and tra- ditionally SGC as the student representative' body expresses ideas, views and aspirants of stu- dents. SGC is therefore a "Com- monwealth of Student Communi- ty." It can be said in the majority of instances that the two greatest weaknesses existing/ in SGC are: 1. A failure on the part of ad- interests. \V o single group should be able laim' an elected SGC member Is sole property. The greatest i for the greatest numberemust he driving force of the coun- This does not mean that cer- . groups won't be 'represented; ier it means that no one group .ld have ascendency over the ,rs. our problem areas which ild attract my immediate at- ion are the proverbial park- problem, membership selectiv- 'administrative wing of SGC, ' the proposed Conference on University. eedless to say, the student king problem is as acute .as it was. There is great need for ,udent parking ramp. The mon- now in the parking fund should used to start construction of amp. The bonds on the ramp d then be paid off by the king fees. This is an important i for all students that could be viated by appropriate council on. i the area of membership ction, the nationwide trend inst al bias and prejudice must be denied. SGC has recogniz- his in setting up the Commit- on Membership in Student Or- izations. Much work needs to, lone to secure the cooperation- understanding of both the lo- .and national governing bod- of our student organizations. gress must be made. ut it is most important to real- hat progress with some groups cially fraternities and sorori- may be painfully slow. SGC i Pe r Hanson Elected member Student Gov- ernment Council; Past treasurer of SGC; Executive Vice Presi- dent of SGC; Delta Kappa Epsi- lon fraternity; Recording Secre- tary of fraternity; Sphinx hon- orary. It is a pleasure and 'a privilege to come back to my constituency after a year's Work in Student. Government Council, and discuss issues with the whole campus rather than the limited number I see in my classes and concerned with student government. After a year's work in the area of student government decision- making, I am proud to say that I am a member of a student gov- ernment that meets issues and programs with a rational concern for the best interests of the stu- dent body and the University. I would choose to touch on but two areas of the vast majority of issues on the campus, that of mem- bership selection and student ac- tion. "All recognized student or- ganizations shall select member- ship and afford opportunities to members on the basis of personal merit not race, color, religion, creed, national origin or ancestry." I would ask you to consider this phrase a minute . . . Is this really nothing more than a statement of positive' criterion of choosing members? As a member of Stu- dent Government Council I would never deny the right of any stu- dent organization to discriminate in membership selection, as long as (and I emphasize this point)' the .organization does it on valid grounds. Personal or inidividual merit assumes that the individual is able to do something about his own development. Race, color, creed, national origin or ancestry are in a sphere where the indi- vidual is helpless to change his situation. This has been my phi- losophy while on Student Gov- ernment Council. I would add one thing further, tions, and the like. We coordin- ate activities, recognize organiza- tions, and express opinions. But to the vast majority, this is noth- ing. SOC has a scope. much wider than presently exercised . . To those who feel we 'do nothing' I would consider it your solemn oh- ligation to make your wishes known and to work closely with your representatives to see that relevant issues are discussed. Let us change do nothingism to con- structive action. In the past year the student all over the country have arisen in what is known as a 'student move- ment,' to give action to what they- considered their ideas and opin- ions. I would ask you to consider some of the issues of the last year. Sit-ins, operation abolition, dime store picketing. In principle, I think that you will agree with the movements. But the principles in some cases are not carried out thru effective action. Procedure or method is as im- portant as the objective ... I can not and will not support move- ments which coose to subvert and ignore the recognized means of deress of grievances ... I will give my wholehearted support to genu- ine student action ... I will work to keep a means of redress open to all and will work against those -A .T 1..2 -A -__+.' l+.T...... Nancy NasseU SGC Human Relations Board; SGC Education Committee; Orientation Leader; Study Com- mittee: Affiliate Foreign Ex- change Program; Kappa Kap- pa Gamma Sorority: Public Re- lations Committee. The elected SGC member is re- sponsible to the inidividual stu- dent, the student group, the Uni- versity, and the society in which he lives. I would define this re- sponsibility of the representative in the following way: because SGC exists for the students at the Uni- versity of Michigan, the responsi- bility of the representative is to provide the imaginative, fore- sighted leadership which will be of the greatest benefit to Univer- sity students. Although student opinion should .be considered in reference to the ultimate success or failure of Council actions, in the final an- alysis, the representative is re- sponsible to his own conscience for providing the kind of leader- ship which the student body ex- pects of the representative they have elected. Finally, because the student government has a respon- sibility to serve the total society, as well as the University, it should express intelligent, informed opin- ion on national issues of student concern. 'As an SGC).member, I would in- volve myself with 'all issues of student concern as they arise. At the present time, there are sev- eral problem areas which demand intelligent and creative solutions. 'Educational: 1. It is the respon- sibility of any educational system to provide for the exceptional stu- dent who is unsuited to the regi- mentation of the present ,urricu- lum structure. Specifically, SGC should aid in the implementation of an Independent Study Program 'which would help meet the needs of interested, qualified students. 2. The University is currently studying methods for making more efficient use of University -facilties. (The proposed tri-se- mester plan is one method under consideration.) I believe that SGC should involve itself in this de- cision. Student Rights: 1. SGC should work to assure the student of due process in dealing with the ad- ministration. Specifically, the pro- posed Student Rights Committee originally developed by Al Haber should be passed., 2. SGC should fight for the vot- ing rights of students who have established residence in Ann Ar- bor., I believe SGC's chief shortcom- ing is its failure to involve itself more completely "in the formula- tion, improvement, and promotion ministrators and students to clear-r ly define the areas of authority in which SGC may work. ' 2. A lack of knowledge on the part of SGC members as to the purposes, functions, organization and administration of SGC. It is not enough that SOC have a constitution and members but to be successful it must 'have pro- jects and areas, of .general com- mon concern for the good of the entire student community on the campus. . To be effective SGC must re- main simple in structure but with definite assigned duties and re- sponsibilities. Every effort should be made to prevent overlapping of powers. There must be clear, easily accessible channels through which additional assignments may, be made. ' As a member of the SGC, I' shall concern myself with areas such as (1) Academic Freedom and Student Rights, (2) Non-Aca- demic Evaluations, (3) Member-i ship lists, (4) University Lecture Restrictions, (5) Student-faculty- administration Conference (6) Driving and Pa'rking, (7) Student* employment, and (8) Internation- al Affairs Programs-Housing Fa- cilities. An educational community uni- fies those who teach, learn and administer in the common pur- poses of improving reciprocal ex- perience, and thus their aims are best served when this unity is real- ized and expressed in their mutual relationships and respective ac- tivities. Such cooperation - should in- clude joint participation of stu- dents, faculty members, and ad- ministrations in the planning and execution of academic, adminis- trative, and co-curricular policy. As a student, I feel a particular responsibility toward those rights which comprise the academic freedoms: the right to study, the right to engage in honest research, the right to organize as members of the academic community in the pursuit and defense of aca- demic aims, and the right of ev- ery student to pursue his educa- tion in an atmosphere of univer- sity autonomy and equal educa- tional opportunity without re- strictions based on race, national or social origin, economic status, Art Honors history p r o g r a m, elected member, Student Gov- ernment Council; Sphinx hon- orary; President, Zeta Beta Tau fraternity. An elected., meiber of Student Government Council must be re- sponsible to the entire student body,, however vague this may seem. He need not always vote according to "student opinion." This does not mean that he should vote according to his per- sonal whims, but he must be able to offer direction to the students, as well as reflect their desires. He must vote for what he deems best for the advancement of the edu- cational goals of the University. By nature of the purpose of SGC, an elected member must be continually conscious of the needs of the student body, and especially student organizations. 2. I.,would involve myself in at- tempting to expand. the role of the governmental functions of SGC as outlined in the Council Plan. The council must fulfill the re- sponsibilities delegated to it by the Board of Regents. We must alter our structure so as to meet the increasing demands and problems of the' individual stu- dent and -student organizations. I will continue to attempt to improve the communications and understanding between the affili- ate system and Student Govern- ment Council. A great deal must be done to explain and assist the fraternity and sorority system in regard to the membership selec- tion'".regulation. 3. Our student government at Michigan is unique in the sense that it' has been given clear au- thority and control in certain areas. Unfortunately, we have not assumed enough responsibiltyin many of these fields. A new pro- gram must be worked out to cen- tralize and expand our present concern in these areas. The value of the present administrative wing must be critically analyzed. The present utilization of ex-of- ficio members must be carefully studied. In conclusion, we must operate as an effective organ of the Uni- versity, and yet maintain our suc- cessful function as a student pressure group.