Staff editorial: Do not rush the bylaws

Staff editorial: Do not rush the bylaws

The Johns Hopkins News-Letter · December 4, 2003

While many were on their way home to family, friends and Thanksgiving turkey, Student Council (StuCo) changed. Gone is the familiar 29-person structure. Gone is the Council structure of committees and boards, including Academic Affairs, MSE Symposium, Board of Elections, Weekend Wonderflix and the Hopkins Organization for Programming. All of this was replaced on Tuesday night with a sketch.

That sketch, approved by students, lays out new structures and new ideas for student involvement. But now it needs form and substance. StuCo, faced with a blank slate, has two options: revert or reform. Reform cannot be rushed.

That reform is provided by the bylaws: the procedures by which StuCo makes decisions, considers issues and runs meetings. They determine the issues a committee is allowed to consider, what it's allowed to vote on and to whom it must report. For instance, on certain issues, a committee may only be allowed an up or down vote, while on others, a committee may be allowed to amend a motion.

The students who will determine new bylaws should know they have an opportunity now to address concerns about the operation of StuCo. Council members should take advantage of the potential for reform created by this transition period.

Student Council could simply mirror their bylaws on the old system. While this is inherently the easiest route to take, it also squanders the opportunity the Council has to improve. Some of the old bylaws are simply not applicable to the new constitution. The newly-elected Senators will soon create a legislative branch to complement the existing executive branch of class officers.

Charles Reyner, still the StuCo president, has wisely suggested that this important effort be a Council-wide discussion, drawing not only on the new legislative body of senators, but on all those elected to represent students. Given the amount of effort necessary to recreate all the rules, committees and procedures associated with StuCo, not to mention the Student Activities Commission (SAC) or Committee on Leadership Appointments (COLA), all the brainpower and experience that can be brought to bear should be. We are also encouraged that Reyner sees this process happening over Intersession, so that the conferees can concentrate on their huge task and prepare it for delivery during the spring semester.

When the bylaw creation process begins, we hope that all students on StuCo will realize the significant opportunity they've been handed to make council better and more responsive. We realize they have been handed a mammoth task. If they take the time, they can take advantage of this potentially meaningful opportunity to reform.