We, the commissioners of Ohio University’s Student Senate, would like to express our collective disappointment in the recent events that have taken place at OU. For many of us, this is not our first year serving the students of OU. In the past, we have prided ourselves on working with the administration to make the university a better, more student-centered environment. We have striven for fairness, inclusion and participation in regard to decision making. By coming to our general body meeting and lying to student representatives, the administration made it clear that they do not share these goals. By giving almost $500,000 worth of raises to the 10 highest-paid administrators this year, they showed that students are not their priority.
It is hard to succinctly state the range of emotions we feel about being lied to by the administration so they could justify a 3.5 percent tuition hike in addition to increases in room and board, college fees, and class fees. Some of us are shocked that administrators would be so blatant in their untruths. Others are bothered by how quickly the administration responded to student cries by informing us, contra what senate was told last year, that warnings about the closing of vital buildings at OU were not meant to be taken literally. To put it lightly, some among us are furious.
The administration of OU has greatly damaged the working relationship that they once had with Student Senate. Whereas before we could be counted on to sit quietly in meetings, taking great care to understand the administration’s side of every debate, now we are forced to adopt a critical stance. The adage, typically attributed to Ronald Reagan, is to trust but verify. Unfortunately, this is no longer an option for us. We will have to distrust until every detail is verified. This is not the way honest business is done; unfortunately, Pam Benoit and Stephen Golding have shown us that what we are doing can hardly be called honest.
We are not simply angry, though. We do have hope that this relationship can be mended. But it is the administration’s responsibility, not ours, to make sure that this is done. We are hoping that they adopt an apologetic tone as they deal with the fallout of these recent events. We are hoping that they remain committed to clearly and truthfully telling students the facts and their opinions about those facts. Perhaps then we can move forward.
Jared Henderson, Mary Kate Gallagher, Tina Kongkeo, Mel Ruberg, Nick Southall, Zainab Kandeh, Isaac Smith, Giles Allen, Kayla Prater, Emma Wright, Leam Pal and Seiara Christian-Daniels are Student Senate commissioners.
