Allie Dyer
Year: Sophomore
Major: Political science with minors in German, philosophy, women and gender studies and French
Hometown: Kettering, Ohio
Activities: Students for Education Reform, Student Senate, Honors Tutorial College Board of Alumni, Delta Gamma, Lost Flamingo Theatre Company
What do you believe qualifies you the most to serve on the Ohio University Board of Trustees?
I think the quality that prepares me best to be an effective student trustee is that I truly care about Ohio University and I’m capable of expressing that in a beneficial way for the university. What I mean by this is, to be a good student trustee, you obviously have to have a good head on your head shoulders and you have to have very clear communication abilities and you have to be willing to put those to good use. For example, I have a lot of experience being involved on campus with a lot of different organizations. I have a very solid foundation for the skillsets necessary to be a good student trustee and I just feel really prepared to take on this role should I be given it.
What experience do you have, besides being a student, that gives you insight into students’ priorities?
Beyond being a student at Ohio University, I’m a member of a lot of different communities inside the university that makes me a good representative for student interests. For example, I am involved in theater at Ohio University — I am a member of the Lost Flamingo Company — so that’s one faction of the population. I’m a member of Greek Life, I absolutely love it here; it’s a great way to get connected and know a diverse group of people within the university. I am involved in non-profit work through Students for Education Reform, so I have a lot of interaction with that segment of the student population. In addition to that, I work pretty closely with Student Senate: I’m involved with Academic Affairs, and last year I was on the Women’s Affairs Commission. So I feel like I come into contact with a representative but diverse set of groups within the population that is more specific than just being a student at Ohio University.
Are there any recent Ohio University Board of Trustees decisions that you feel strongly about or that you do not agree with?
I understand that the Board of Trustees agreed for a 3.5% tuition hike for the coming year. I definitely have some qualms about that decision; I understand that the board has presented it as a necessary decision to maintain the quality of our institution, and of course I don’t have access to all the information that the members of the Board of Trustees do, (but) to me, I feel like different solutions could have been reached than a 3.5% tuition increase.
What issues do you think are most important for the Ohio University Board of Trustees to address?
I think the Board of Trustees needs to be a little more direct in their efforts in helping the Ohio University student population understand the logic and reason and information that goes into their decision making process regarding the budget. While I’m very confident in the board’s ability to make those decisions, I think one thing that could be improved is their ability to explain why those decisions had to be made. I know there is a lot of information on the university’s website, but I feel like there are more effective strategies for getting that information out there.
What is your stance on whether student trustees should or should not be given voting rights?
I think that ideally, student trustees would have voting rights; however, it’s my understanding that the relationship that Ohio University student trustees have with the board is a very positive, collaborative one. I think that it’s working pretty well as it is, and student trustees are given a voice and really respected by the board, which is very important.
However, I think it’s important to note that other student trustees at other institutions aren’t in quite as a favorable position as ours are and I think it’s important to work towards enfranchising the other student trustees as well as our own. But (we need) to make that a gradual, careful process — to make sure we’re doing it in the right way.
In general, what are the main things you would like to accomplish in the student trustee position?
My overall, general goal as a potential student trustee is to really represent not only student interests, but the interests of faculty, staff and just the entire community of people that are involved in university life. The ways I think that would specifically manifest itself (are) providing more open lines of communication and really interacting with members of the Ohio University community and sort of being the face of the board to the community.
I feel like a lot of students don’t really know a lot about how the Board of Trustees works and that’s something I’d like to change, because I think that if there’s more of a give-and-take between the university body and the Board of Trustees, we can make some really great things happen at Ohio University.
