As students spill back into Athens over the course of the next few days, it is important to know what lies in the year ahead. With everyone worrying about their classes and the coming days, one of the more important issues that students should be worried about this year is President Roderick McDavis’ retirement.
Regardless of how you feel about McDavis’ overall time as president, as he enters his last year it is important for students to be mindful of the process of electing a new president.
While students feel as though their voices are often not heard on campus, this poses the perfect opportunity for students to be heard. Even if you consider yourself to be a part of silent campus – this decision will affect you in some way shape or form.
Over a decade before we were all here, Roderick McDavis was. You were empowered by his convocation speech at The Convo and were ready to tackle, not only the next four years, but probably your doctorate.
Then as weeks went by you noticed that the same white truck was always in the driveway of the vacant president’s house and remembered that McDavis broke over 100 years of school tradition because of bats.
If hearing “Coventry Lane” irks you as much as it does the average student of Ohio University. Be vocal over the next year as candidates for the job start coming in.
The search committee features OU Student Senate president Hannah Clouser and Hannah Britton as student representatives. I urge any and all students to voice their opinions to these students in regards to the next president.
Chuck Greenlee is a sophomore studying adolescent to young adult integrated language arts at Ohio University. What traits do you want to see in the university's next president? Let Chuck know by tweeting him @chuckingaround
