The Academic Standards Act, proposed by the new IU Student Association executives, isn't likely to take IUSA to a higher level of excellence as its proponents suggest, but will escort many dedicated IUSA representatives out of office in the fall if passed. The act will require all representatives to have a 2.6 cumulative G.P.A. opposed to the current requirement -- a 2.0. Wait, there's more. The student body president must hold a 3.2 G.P.A. and his fellow executives must each have a 3.0. If the bill passes at Monday's Congress meeting, it will go into effect in the fall, possibly emptying a majority of seats -- some that have yet to be filled. Our problem? Well, it's not like politicians are expected to have made the grade at Yale. Take George W. for example. Granted, it's nice to get good grades. But one's G.P.A. is not necessarily an indication of intelligence or dedication. Perhaps the students who are only mustering a 2.0 spend the majority of their time working for IUSA. One's responsibility may be reflected on his or her transcript, but not necessarily his or her work ethic. And besides, it's hard enough to get students involved in student government. Now we are kicking those out who wanted it the most and those who were voted to office by their peers? That doesn't make any sense. The passing of this bill will not only injure our student government by deepening the partisan wound already existing between the new and the old, but will allow the current executives to manipulate Congress by appointing their own people to fill the void left when a third or so of the house is expelled. And yes, we realize Congress must approve these appointments -- but without the majority of seats filled, the vote will undoubtedly be biased. The executives assert credibility is weakened when working with the administration because IUSA is less likely to be taken seriously if those involved in the group aren't making the grade. Although we feel the administration has better things to do than check the transcripts of those they deal with, if this was this case, then why have the executives allotted room for presidential discretion? If the bill is important enough to propose, it should be important enough to apply in all situations. The majority of the students voting Monday are proxies, filling in for representatives out of town this summer. One thing the bill doesn't include is whether or not proxies will be held to the same standard of academic excellence. The executives have left that "up for interpretation." In addition, the IU Supreme Court was left out of the bill as well. It's evidently acceptable for a supreme court justice to earn less than a 2.6. We have no intentions of discounting the need for academic accountability, nor are we stating G.P.A. shouldn't be a factor when one is chosen to represent the student body. However, IUSA should hold its members to the same academic standard the University feels is appropriate for athletes and students to participate in extracurricular activities -- to obtain academic good standing by earning a cumulative G.P.A. of 2.0, or a C average.
yes-no-abstain
