University President Gregory L. Fenves (Courtesy of Emory University).

Dear Editors,

In the Emory Wheel article, “Undergraduate students vote ‘no confidence’ in Fenves in wake of protests,” the following quote appears:

“In an email to the Wheel, Assistant Vice President of University Communications Laura Diamond emphasized that only 31% of the total undergraduate student body voted that they did not have confidence in Fenves.”

This percentage — the product of the proportion of eligible students who voted multiplied by the proportion of “no confidence” votes — can only be compared to the equivalent percentage, i.e., the proportion of eligible students who voted, 41.9%, multiplied by the proportion of ‘confidence’ votes in Fenves, 24.8%, for a total of 10.4%.

This erroneous comparison of apples (31% of all students, whether they voted or not) to oranges (24.8% of students who voted, and had confidence) demonstrates the importance of understanding basic statistics by students and administrators alike.

As an aside, the proportion of students who voted was notably high in comparison to that of other Student Government Association elections.

The undergraduate student vote is an important statement that should be heeded rather than discounted.

Uriel Kitron is a Goodrich C. White Professor Emeritus of Environmental Sciences.

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