Eisenheim/ Dansand for LUCC President/ Vice President 2006
Wouldn’t you like to see our beloved Lawrence University break the Top 10 in National Academic Rankings?
Personal Statement:
Hello and welcome to our Campaign Site! We are very excited about the prospect of representing the interests of all Lawrence University Students from Term III of the 2005-2006 School Year through the end of Term II of the 2006-2007 School Year. Jay and I have a wide array of previous student government experience, listed below. I have experience as a student government servant in the University of Wisconsin system. Many of the student governance skills I learned there will translate well to the responsibilities of President of LUCC. Jay has much experience as an active member of the LUCC itself. It is this combination of public and private school student government experience that will mesh well into an effective and active administration. Before joining forces on this ticket, Jay and I had established separate platforms. Our platforms were very different, which we feel is a good thing. As you can clearly see, our platforms complement one another quite nicely. Both Jay and I felt we could govern most effectively if we were to run and win as a team. We know we can work well together and have a common vision for Lawrence University.
Both Jay and I have a thorough knowledge of Council/ Senate and Committee procedure. We both also understand the current issues facing LUCC and the University itself. As you can see from our platform, we both have bold initiatives which extend beyond current issues. We will address the current issues facing Lawrence University. However, we want our administration to proactively and progressively improve this institution and not just react to problems after they have materialized. As I stated at the Candidate's Forum of 15 January 2006, Jay and I will seek to fill our cabinet with students who are competent and have a strong motivation to improve the University. The application process for these appointed positions will be open to all Lawrence Students Constitutionally qualified to hold those positions.
Our academic initiatives are aimed at increasing the number of teaching professionals available to Lawrence University Students while simultaneously capping the number of full-time students at 1350. The ultimate goal is to bring the student/ faculty ratio down to 10-1 from its current 18-1 ratio. Both Jay and I have a tremendous amount of respect for the principles of Academic Freedom and we have no desire to affect any curricular decisions or policies. We simply seek to allow all teaching/ research professionals the ability to better interact with their students through smaller class sizes and a wider range of class/ Course of Study offerings.
A fair amount of our platform is taken from lessons learned in Lawrence University/ College history. Nathan Pusey, Lawrence University's 10th President (tutor 1935-1938, President 1945-1953), placed a strong emphasis on core academic improvements. He hired more faculty and staff in the face of budget shortages. He introduced Freshman Studies to our curriculum. His focus was not on facilities expansion and construction, but on academic improvement. This modus operandi set him apart as perhaps the greatest President in Lawrence University's history. His focus on academic excellence and academic freedom indirectly resulted in a doubling of Lawrence College's endowment. We feel that this is a good example to follow and we will advocate for such operating principles on behalf of the Lawrence Community as LUCC President and Vice President.
Please feel free to peruse the rest of our platform, listed below.
Erik Eisenheim Student Government Experience:
- United Council of UW Students 2-year campuses Vice President while a student at the University of Wisconsin – Fox Valley.
- Co-chair of Strategic Planning subcommittee tasked with defining a vision for United Council.
- Student Governance Council Academic Affairs Director while a student at UW-Fox.
- Student member of UW Colleges Faculty Senate Curriculum Committee.
- Student member of UW Colleges Faculty Senate Academic Policy Committee.
- Student member of UW Colleges Faculty Senate body.
- Student Senator with the UW-Fox Student Association.
- Member of Student University Fee Allocation Committee (SUFAC).
- Chairperson of Constitution and By-Laws Committee.
- Member of Art Gallery Committee.
Jay Dansand Student Government Experience:
- Elected LUCC Representative for the Sage District for the 2005-2006 school year.
- Finance Committee member for the 2005-2006 school year.
- Student Welfare Committee member from 2004-present.
- Polling, Elections, and Leadership Committee member from 2004-present.
- Elected LUCC Representative for Kohler District for the 2004-2005 school year.
- Committee on Committees and member for the 2004-2005 school year.
- Committee on Campus Organizations member for the 2004-2005 school year.
- Parliamentarian for Kohler Hall Council member for 2004-2005 school year.
- Reviewed and revised Kohler Hall Constitution while Council member.
- Recording Secretary for Executive and Resident Councils of the Mu chapter of the Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity.
- Chair of Public Efforts Committee for Zablocki Kiwanis Builders' club 1998-2002.
Initiatives:
Academic:
- Ultimate goal of dropping average student/ faculty ratio to 10-1 from its current 18-1 ratio.
- Advocating for an increase in the number of tenure track teaching positions.
- Advocating for capping University student enrollment at 1350 full-time students.
- Tasking the Vice President, Treasurer, and if necessary, an ad hoc Academic Standards Committee to research the pay structure and benefits packages of current Lawrence academic staff and tenure track/ tenured faculty. The results of this study will allow LUCC to determine if current compensation for Lawrence teaching professionals is commensurate with the pay packages of other top-flight liberal arts colleges such as Williams College, Swarthmore College, Carleton College, and Oberlin College.
- Advocating for an increase in faculty and staff salaries to attract top-tier teaching and research professionals.
- Continued support for Lawrence Fellows program.
Student Welfare:
- Continuation of and support for a rich, diverse program of student activities, clubs, and organizations.
- Study to be executed jointly by the Polling, Elections, and Leadership Committee and the Steering Committee to examine the feasibility and desirability of implementing a University-funded universal health plan for those students without coverage.
- Reinstatement of super-senior lottery numbers for housing assignment.
- Plan for replacement of all dormitory washers and dryers more than eight years old at all student-housing locations.
- A more open, transparent student body relationship with the Board of Trustees.
- An ex-officio student seat on the Board of Trustees.
- Introduction of service program to encourage LUCC Council members and officers to assist the Alumni Relations office in their fund-raising endeavors (Example: Phone-A-Thon).
- Opposition to excessive LUCC bureaucracy.
- Jay and I see a definite purpose to all current LUCC standing and ad hoc
committees. However, we will discourage the creation of excessive subcommittees when consideration of issues by the relevant full committees would be faster and more democratic.
- Formation of a permanent Trustees and University Governance oversight committee.
- Reestablishment of Committee on Environmental Responsibility, the Experimental Projects and Grants Committee, and the Humanitarian Project Grants Committee, which have recently been dissolved through Council action.
- Opposition to further building ventures on campus outside of existing facility renovation.
- Opposition to proposed Student Center.
- Jay and I oppose the Center because we feel that the University cannot afford such a facility when the money could be much better spent on enriching the quality and quantity of teaching professionals available to us.
- We also oppose the demolition of Hulbert House as a part of the Student Center.
- Proposal of modifications to student dining plans that would permit students to roll over their unused meal plan meals and Dining Dollars to the next Term.
- Introduction of more meal plan options and an increase in vegetarian/ vegan dining options.
- Improvements to Lawrence University network with an eye towards further increasing bandwidth. Bring Formal Group housing under the jurisdiction of the LUCC.
- Bringing Formal Group housing under LUCC regulation.
- Currently, Formal Group Housing is the only segment of Lawrence's student housing program whose policies are not regulated by the LUCC. We believe all student housing resources should be equally regulated.
Don't forget to vote for Erik Eisenheim and Jeremiah Dansand on 18, 19, or 20 January at Downer Commons or Lucinda's!