No tuition without representation

In the great American tradition of decision-making, IU has formed a committee to fill the monumental role of University president. The committee has been working furiously to find the brightest, most qualified individual to lead this great institution into a new generation of high-tech higher education. Its task is not an easy one. The president is not only the face of the University, but also an administrator, a fund-raiser, a spokesman and lobbyist. He or she must be personable but business oriented; if he or she stands seven-feet-tall and shoots lightning from his eyes, all the better.\nAnd yet, this committee has a fatal flaw. It has excluded two of the largest and most important constituencies in the IU system from voting: undergraduates and Bloomington students. Thus, no matter the care taken in its decision-making process, this committee seriously risks making an underqualified selection. \nGranted, in its refusal to add an undergraduate and/or Bloomington representative, the committee has cited a reasonable concern: too many cooks spoil the soup. Nevertheless, this "Committee to Elect the President" should at least try to reflect the people the president will be leading. To follow the committee's reasoning, only 10 states should be represented in Congress because it's easier than having 50.\nFurthermore, the pure cost of attending IU-Bloomington -- $13,000 a year in tuition and room and board for undergrads -- ought to earn these students a vote (or, at least, their parents). And isn't a large part of the University's purpose supposed to be undergraduate education? (Not that it's apparent in some entry-level courses ... ) We don't mean to denigrate graduate-level education, research, public outreach, consulting or any of the other activities -- but we do seem to recall some emphasis on educating undergraduates in all those admissions materials sent to many of us as high school seniors. And isn't Bloomington the flagship campus in this system? Wasn't it dissatisfaction at Bloomington that pushed Herbert to leave in the first place? Wouldn't arranging representation for Bloomington thus be at least minimally logical?\nNow, we understand that it might be tricky figuring out who should represent Bloomington and undergraduate students in the search. The IU Students Association desperately wants to -- but the lifespan of any given IUSA administration is so short, and its institutional memory so shallow (due to members graduating), that whether it could contribute constructively to the search is open to debate. Perhaps a special election for a Bloomington and/or undergraduate representative could be held? Perhaps IU's mysterious undergraduate advisory body, the Board of Aeons, could step up to the task? (Perhaps they have already -- who knows? Cue X-Files theme.)\nRegardless, leaving a major sector of a population out of the political process is always a recipe for trouble. And after Herbert's exceedingly short term, you'd think that the committee would be looking for ways to broaden the support for whatever candidate they finally pick.