The IU Student Association has an ambitious legislative agenda this fall -- clocks and pencil sharpeners.\nNext week, IUSA will begin a drive to have more pencil sharpeners installed on campus. They will be passing out pencils with the words "will you sharpen me?" printed on them. This is to raise awareness of a lack of public sharpeners in classrooms and campus buildings.\nIUSA also is submitting to the administration a plan to build clocks around the campus, which passed congress 37-0-1. \n"We hope that with the clocks, people can stay outside and enjoy the beautiful campus without worrying about where a clock is or having a watch," said IUSA president Meredith Suffron, a senior.\nIn the Oct. 19 IDS staff editorial, "Tax-free books lofty goal for IUSA," it was suggested IUSA should concentrate on more realizable goals. Now, they have.\nNo one can doubt purchasing clocks and pencil sharpeners for students are realizable goals. In fact, pencil sharpeners and clocks are wonderful things, every student should be able to make use of them. But it calls into question if IUSA is serious about more pressing student issues when a push for these two items becomes the main legislative priority of our student government.\nMaybe IUSA needs to find a middle ground and fight for goals that are both attainable and substantive.\nThe most discouraging part of the clock initiative is the cost. The current plans range from having five, 11 and 15 clocks in various locations. The clocks run from $8,000 to $15,000 per clock, depending on the style. By these numbers, the overall cost of putting clocks around campus will range from $40,000 to $225,000.\nFor that amount, IUSA could buy watches for every student without one, and not worry about cluttering up our scenic campus. To their credit, the plan calls for the funds to come from private donors -- but it also raises the larger issue of leadership.\nWhile they're worrying about pencil sharpeners and clocks, other important issues are not being raised. The School of Music is having financial trouble. A petition signed by 3,000 people is calling for the resignation of IU administrators. Two recent rankings are showing IU slipping somewhat compared to other universities. Another chemistry professor left the department, claiming that faculty are demoralized. Graduate students and associate instructors are underpaid and even trying to leave IUSA for their own organization.\nInstead, IUSA is focusing on clocks and pencil sharpeners. It might be time IUSA look more closely at what its purpose on this campus is -- which, in our view, should be that of leadership, a voice for the students. Is the students' top concern the lack of clocks and pencil sharperners? You tell us.
staff vote: 9-0\nidsnews.com vote: 44-87-1
