6 - The Michigan Daily - Orientation Edition 2003
STUDENT GROUPS
THE MICHIGAN STUDENT ASSEMBLY
MSA is most prominent voice for student body on campus
By Tomislav Ladika either MSA funding to certain student projects or
September03, 2002 demanding that the Assembly take an ideological
stance on an issue. Committees also report their
Supporters,
protesters
of war clash
during rally
4
Students interested in gaining a voice on cam-
pus affairs orithose eager to try out something
new, have the chance to take on a greater role
through the Michigan Student Assembly.
MSA is the main student governing body on
campus. Every college and school, including the
Rackham Graduate School and Law School, is
represented proportionally in MSA with at least
one representative. The assembly is led this year
by LSA senior President Sarah Boot and Vice
President Dana Glassel, an LSA junior.
MSA meetings are open to the public and con-
vene every Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m. on the third
floor of the Michigan Union. The central issues of
most meetings are resolutions usually calling for
weekly progress, and budget issues or proposed
changes to various MSA procedural rules are
often discussed at every meeting.
MSA serves two main purposes. It creates tangi-
ble results through its large bureaucratic system of
committees and commissions, which consist of
both representatives and regular students who work
on various campus projects during the week. These
committees sponsor forums and programs on
issues, including campus safety, sexual assault
awareness and diversity. One committee and one
commission also have power to appropriate MSA
funds to various student groups. Groups can apply
to MSA for money and each year the assembly
hands out over $200,000 to various campus groups.
Student apathy, mudslinging contribute to low voter turnout in student elections
By Andrew Kaplan
March 20, 2003
Although voter turnout for the Michi-
gan Student Assembly fell last year -
nearly 1,000 fewer students voted in the
2002 fall elections than in the 2001 fall
elections - the rate of undergraduate
turnout has stayed steady at about 20
percent since 1998.
Some students said candidates'
inabilities to acquaint themselves with
their constituents has led to a sense of
apathy toward student government.
"Especially because the campus is
so large, it's hard to encompass all
students and all their views," LSA
junior Uzoma Anyanetu said.
Reflecting on a relatively low voter
turnout in student government elec-
tions at the University, several stu-
dents said MSA representatives do
not serve students' interests.
"Students think MSA is a waste of
time," Rackham student Eric Miller said.
"I don't think MSA does anything useful"
"Students feel (student government)
is just self-serving, resume-stuffing
positions," Anyanetu said, adding that
she approves of MSA resolutions advo-
cating campus improvements. "If (reso-
lutions) are in the University, it's fine,
but with Iraq it's a waste of time."
"Bush doesn't care what we think,"
she said, citing an MSA resolution dis-
couraging war with Iraq.
But students said when MSA can
fulfill their purpose as campus lead-
ers by passing resolutions that seek to
improve University life.
"One thing that sticks out is the
transportation service to the airport,"
Rackham student Mohammad Khalil
said, referring to the MSA airBus that
offers rides to Detroit Metro Airport
during Spring Break.
Khalil - who is coordinator of the
Muslim Graduate Students Associa-
tion - added that MSA was quick to
fund his student group.
"It's the little things like that - it just
makes the process more convenient," he
said. "They've always been quicker than
they tell me (at providing funds)."
In addition, the assembly's trou-
bles are not unique among student
governments of other Big Ten uni-
versities. "In terms of voter turnout,
17.5 percent of undergrads voted
last year," said Allison Young,
Undergraduate Student Government
chief of staff at Pennsylvania State
University. "I would say feelings are
mixed about the role of the USG."
By Emily Kraack
and Ryan Vicko
March21, 2003
More than 2,000 people took to the
streets of Ann Arbor yesterday to
voice concern and support for the war
in Iraq. The rallies began in the Diag
and grew as they moved to the Ann
Arbor Federal Building on the corner
of Fifth and Liberty streets.
Students on the Diag divided
themselvesinto two distinct groups4
- those who were opposed to war
gathered near the steps of the Har-
lan Hatcher Graduate Library, while
those who supported using military
force in Iraq gathered toward the
back of the Diag.
A dozen student groups sponsored the
rally in opposition to the war. The rally
included speakers from the Black Stu-
dent Union, Muslim Students Associa-
tion and the Michigan Student Assembly
as well asa drumming rally.
"We're just protesting the war,"
LSA junior Lena Masri, a rally
organizer and member of the Mus-
lim Students Association, Anti-War
Action! and Students Allied for
Freedom and Equality, said.
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