Guest Column - Joel Anderson

It is almost upon us: the dreaded month of February, the month that skips out on at least two days and brings us overpriced roses and a disappointing groundhog day. However, February brings something even more insidious—if you are freshmen you, are in for a treat; if you are a returning sophomore or higher, then get ready for the onslaught: the Northern Iowa Student Government presidential and senate elections are almost here.

Now in full disclosure, I was the Student Body President from 2010-2011. My vice president, Emma Hashmann, and I ran unopposed in our election. I was happy that I didn't have to spend all of the money that we raised but I was also sad that more students didn't ask about what the job entailed. I had so many answers ready for all the questions that I hoped we would get: what is your stance on tuition? How much are fees going up? Who deals with parking? What do I do if I have a problem with a professor? Will my major be lost in the budget cuts?  Emma and I contacted 96 student groups to meet with and only 12 let us speak; how were we supposed to inform the student population of our goals and plan if we couldn't speak to them? Keep this in mind for the rest of the article.

Back to the onslaught that will shortly come. First, you will get Facebook friend requests from at least three candidates. Having a huge amount of Facebook friends will allow them to get their status on to your news feed. My request to you, though, is to ask them a question if they friend you. Ask them their stance on differential tuition for CBA students. Ask them about their stance on how the Student Service Fee distributes money. After all, YOU will pay them each $9,000-plus next year in salaries.

The second thing is that they will ask to come to your student organization or dorm floor meeting. Please let them come and discuss their ideas with you. You need to know if you want these people to meet with Governor Branstad or President Allen on your behalf, because they will, and you have to be confident that they are representing you. I had to meet with state leaders weekly and discuss issues ranging from tuition to public safety and I had to sound competent while doing it.

    The third thing is that they will have a lot of supporters who are friends of theirs, which is a great thing. However, ask them why they support their friends. Before you vote for a friend, would you trust them with your wallet? Now think of the student body's wallet. They don't have to be an accountant to do the job, but they do have to have a lot of critical reasoning skills to comprehend the issues.

    Last year, less than 2,500 students voted on behalf of 14,000. With each of your bank accounts, student loans, and coming years at stake it's important that you really consider and question who will be representing you at important meetings.

______

Joel Anderson is a senior in philosophy and accounting from Clive, Iowa. Anderson served as student body president during the 2010-2011 academic year.