The Editorial Board would like to commend the Student Government Association (SGA) for hosting an open forum in which students were able to directly interact with their elected SGA representatives and petition them for action. Additionally, we found the SGA’s facilitation of the forum to be prudent while simultaneously maintaining a receptive approach to student input.

The concept of open dialogue between students and their representatives cannot be understated. The Editorial Board is strongly in favor of continuing the excellent precedent of transparency and communication set by this community forum. We believe that the best solutions are established when student thought and opinion are taken into consideration, and we firmly support the SGA’s efforts toward furthering these aims by creating opportunities for University administrators to hear student sentiments. When administrators make decisions without student input, their decisions are definitionally ill-informed. Blocking students out is simply not a viable strategy, and while the forum provided an excellent opportunity for students to voice their beliefs, the Editorial Board would like to see these open channels of direct communication between students and administrators available in the future.

We believe that beyond the necessity of the open forum in itself, this particular effort by the SGA was particularly effective because the stated goal of the forum was not only to hear student concerns but to gather solutions, and throughout, they encouraged students who spoke out to provide solutions to the problems raised. Alerting the administration to the issues at hand is an important step, but simply complaining about the status quo will not effect change. It puts unfair expectations on the administration and even the SGA to solve all of our problems, and so we are glad that this forum was not allowed to be used as merely a medium to vent anger. By recognizing the need for concrete solutions and compiling a formal report for the administration with a summary of the sentiments expressed and solutions proposed by students, as well as the SGA’s own recommendations, the SGA showed that it understands how positive change will be made and that they are committed to working with the administration productively to most effectively serve the student body.

The Editorial Board thanks the SGA for its well-conceived and well-executed approach to addressing the pressing issues at hand, and we lend our full support for such initiatives in the future.