Board seeks new student trustee

Applications for the student position on IU's board of trustees will be available Tuesday, Dec. 5.\nAny full-time IU student may apply for the position, which begins July 1 and lasts two years. The student trustee must be a full-time undergraduate or graduate student for the duration of the appointment.\nA student has been appointed to the IU board of trustees for the past 25 years, since Indiana law first mandated the position's creation. Functioning as a liaison between the students and the board, the only difference between the two appointments is the length of their terms. Regular trustees are appointed for three years.\nSusan Dillman, director of media relations, said the student trustee functions like a regular trustee -- attending meetings, participating in decision making and voting. \n"There was a pretty concerted lobbying effort to have student representation on the boards of all public institutions in Indiana in the '70s," she said. "(The student trustee) brings a very important student voice to deliberations and decisions that the trustees make."\nStephen Backer, a trustee since 1998, said he views the student trustee as his equal.\n"Their vote is the same as mine," he said. "It adds a very good dynamic to the board."\nBacker said all trustees bring something different to the table, and he finds it difficult to pinpoint one quality crucial to the success of a student trustee.\n"He or she must be somebody who can work with other people, who can balance all the different views and is able to compromise in their decisions," he said.\nDean Hertzler, whose term as student trustee expires June 30, said that although his term has been filled with controversial decisions, such as the firing of former men's basketball coach Bob Knight, the chance he has had to contribute to the University is memorable for him.\n"Being on the board is having a chance to influence the decisions that the trustees make," he said. "It's a chance to affect the long-term planning for the University, and what the current priorities of the University should be."\nHertzler said he suggests future student trustees remain open-minded, ask questions and be certain his or her voice and opinion is heard.\n"The position is what the student makes of it," he said. "It takes a lot of time, but it is very much worth the experience, both for what you learn and the opportunity you have to contribute."\nFor more information, call the board of trustees office, in Room M005 of the Indiana Memorial Union, at 812-855-3762, or visit www.indiana.edu/~trustees.