Students May Gain Seat With Trustees

Three decades after anti-war protesters burned flags on campus, university students may soon get an equal vote.

The House Higher Education Committee Thursday considered a bill to add a student trustee on the boards of Washington State University, Eastern Washington University and four other state universities and colleges.

“It’s awesome that we get a vote,” said Neil Walker, president of the 17,000 Associated Students of WSU. “We’ve been pushing this for 30-plus years and have come a long way to get true representation.”

Typically composed of business executives, political supporters and university donors, the boards hire the presidents, set policy, approve contracts and hear complaints.

The idea for student representation has been around since the mid-1960s, but school administrators have opposed it every step of the way.

This year, however, nearly a third of the House’s 98 members have signed on as sponsors. The chairman of the higher education committee even told university officials to start accepting the change.

“The train has left the station and here it comes,” said Rep. Don Carlson, R-Vancouver.

The bill is expected to move quickly through Carlson’s committee and to the House floor.

University lobbyists said the measure would open the door for big contributors and other special interest groups to seek a voting position on the boards. They pointed out that current law already permits the governor to appoint students to the boards if he wants.

Board members should not be appointed “because they’re students, or faculty or in the asparagus industry,” said WSU lob byist Larry Ganders.

Carlson was not persuaded.

“The student perspective doesn’t mean they represent a fraternity or a sorority or dormitory or an economic group,” he said. “They represent a campus.”

The bill would add a student to each board to serve a one-year term. Appointments would be made by the governor and students would be excluded from voting on issues related to hiring, discipline or tenure of faculty.

The bill would increase the size of WSU’s board to 10 members; Eastern’s to eight.

The bill does not say whether students would receive the per diem paid to trustees for the days they meet. Eastern pays trustees up to $38 per day to cover meals.

Strider Denison, executive vice president of the Associated Students of Eastern, said the change will force the boards to pay attention to their “customers.”

“Students are smart and have something to add to the university. The school will be a better place.”

, DataTimes