Staff Editorial
Well, it’s the opening of a new school year. It’s a time to celebrate new beginnings, new friendships and that spectacular view we will soon take for granted once again. For freshmen it’s the start of a long journey, and for seniors, the start of a journey coming to an end.
In the spirit of such an auspicious time, we would just like to say how nice it is to be back. Sure, there’s plenty to complain about: budgets and programs being cut, that new stop sign and the realization that Pepperdine still has a ridiculous amount of stairs. Not to mention any of the other standard complaints that are traditionally lampooned at Frosh Follies. But for us returning folk, coming back to our home away from home, it’s hard to stay irritated at whatever quibbles we may have.
Having said that, this is still our staff editorial and we’ve got to give you something to praise and/or critique. Seeing as we’ve done enough praising already, we’ll go with the latter this week. And where else would we start but with the world of the Student Government Association?
There have been some big changes implemented in SGA over the summer — changes that we welcome and think should provide the student body with better representation. For those of you who missed it or for freshmen, last March the administration removed the Programming Board from SGA — a decision that was met with mixed reactions from students inside and outside student government.
The board is the entity in charge of planning and executing all school-wide activities ranging from huge Alumni Park concerts to T-shirt giveaways. For four years, it had been run with varying degrees of control by SGA; a set up that many thought caused inconsistencies that were not beneficial to either organization.
The split has essentially returned SGA to what it is intended to do: represent the students in terms of school changes and policy. Whether you want new clocks in the HAWC or the ability to have your significant other in your room past 1 a.m., SGA is your voice to the Pepperdine powers that be.
In theory, SGA’s time will no longer be consumed planning concerts and other complicated events that have side tracked it these past few years. With this week’s announcement of reallocation budget cuts (including the elimination of several majors), the need for SGA has never been so vital. Students must have a committed voice (aside from the Graphic, of course) to make our opinions and desires known to the administration. Without the distraction of activity planning, SGA can now be an organization solely dedicated to this purpose.
Meanwhile, for the Programming Board, removing SGA from the picture gives them more freedom to plan events and keep students entertained. With the board now under the oversight of the administration, there is a better chance that serious budget issues (like those experienced by 2003’s Waves of Mercy and Third Eye Blind concerts) won’t arise. As we argued last year, if the administration is going to stringently limit what types of events can be put on (namely, Christian-friendly only), they might as well make sure these events are run economically.
However, we will never like the fact that the administration does stringently limit what the Programming Board can plan. Let’s not forget the Sum 41 controversy two years ago when the popular punk band along with several others agreed to play at our humble university. Students were excited, and rightfully so. Unfortunately, Sum 41’s not-so-Christian message was deemed inappropriate for Pepperdine and the concert was axed.
Pepperdine is a private institution and it can naturally do whatever it likes. As such, if it doesn’t want a certain band to perform here, there’s nothing we students can do to stop them (even if SGA tells them it’s what we want). However, that doesn’t change the fact that no matter how much more freedom the Programming Board has, its hands are still perpetually tied by the Pepperdine administration.
Seeing as it’s the new school year though, for the moment we shall give everyone concerned the benefit of the doubt. No one would like to see everything be happy and go off without a hitch more than us. So good luck to all, and here’s to yet another year.
08-30-2004