Page 6
University Daily Kansan, February 27, 1984
Student presidential elections Starting Over is new approach
Stories by Cindy Holm Photos by staff photographers
The Starting Over candidates for student body president and vice president are campaigning on their experience in the Student Senate but promise a new approach to the Senate's problems.
Loren Bushy, the Starting Over presidential candidate, said recently. 'Even though we have experience in the Student Senate, we are not the same
Loren Busyh, Hutchinson senior, said last week that he had decided to run for student body president for the Starting Over Coalition because he thought he and his running mate, Paul Buskirk, Wichita graduate student, had the experience needed to solve recent Senate problems.
"We have a good grasp of the issues," said Busby, a fifth-term senator. "Students shouldn't vote for someone just because he would be fun in office."
The student body president is more than the president of the Senate, he said. The president represents the students to the University of Kansas administration, the Board of Regents and the Kansas Legislature.
Busy said that as president, he would serve on various committees and be active in local government.
managed the Senate office and Senate meetings.
However, Busby said he would use his experience in the Senate to lobby for new legislation.
He said he wanted the Senate to permanently give control of its elec-
tors to Mr. Bush.
ble to students.
"We don't want to revamp the elections," he said. "We want to remove the elections from the Senate's hands.
The founders of the Senate designed the Senate as an organization to serve the students, he said, but the Senate has moved away from that role.
"Most students don't even know where the Senate office is," he said.
Busby he wanted the office to be receptive to students' opinions.
The Senate office should be a resource center like an administrative center for the county.
Busby and Buskirk: Starting Over
"This election is just for the president and vice president. Problems will be magnified next November when the senators are elected."
Busy said he would appoint a committee to investigate removing the Senate elections from the supervision of the Senate Elections Committee. The committee also propose revisions in the Senate election rules and regulations, he said.
Buskirk, who was a senator for three years, said he wanted to reorganize the company.
"People are intimidated by the office now," he said. "They aren't received well, and they are immediately turned off."
The Starting Over candidates also said they would ask the Senate to allege $25,000 to $30,000 from the Senate for support for improvements in campus lighting.
Buskirk said that the Senate's money would be used to encourage the Kansas University Endowment Association and the universities for additional funds for lighting.
Loren Busby, presidential candidate, and Paul Buskirk, vice-presidential candidate, of the Starting Over Coalition.
Student rights Costume's goal
The Costume Party candidates say that their candidacy symbolizes every member of the movement.
"We're not here to make polished speeches," said Dennis "Boo" Highberger, Garnett senior and Costume Party vice-presidential candidate. "We show people what people just like them are getting up and doing something."
"We want to encourage people to think about what they're doing here, what their role is at the University and in society," Vogel said.
Carla Vogel, Overland Park special student and the presidential candidate, said, "People feel powerless to get them down." They can stand up for their rights."
; The Costume Party candidates said they planned to meet people face-to-face without the games played by most politicians.
The Costume Party is the only coalition from November's invalidated student body presidential election to run in the new election.
However, the Costume Party has undergone change. Highbierger ran for
"Giving away a pretty good shot at being student body president is a good
example of how I feel about power seeking," Highberg said.
Higherberger and Vogel are a team, he said, and will divide the responsibilities of the president and vice president according to their time.
He said that he didn't think that running in the original election would hurt his chances of winning the new election.
Vogel said she and Highberger would change the structure of the Senate because the present structure was
"People who don't understand the rules feel intimidated and aren't heard," he said. "We want to deal with people on the basis of equality."
Senators would sit in circle at meetings so they could see each other, he said. A "facilitator" would run the meetings and limit speaking time.
"The meetings would not be chaotic," he said, and everyone would have a clear view of it.
Highberger said the Costume Party offered a broader perspective than
Vogel and Highberger Costume Party
stifling and frustrating for participants.
"The Senate is a separate organization instead of an integral part of the University where all channels can meet to discuss issues." she said.
Higherberger said they advocated replacing Roberts Rules of Order, the parliamentary procedure used in the Senate's meetings, with a simple system using a consensus vote, which would allow every senator to speak.
most coaltions because its goals went beyond the Senate and the University of Kansas.
For example, he said, the Costume Party plans to ask the Kansas University Endowment Association to divest its interests in South Africa.
"We don't want our education fianced through the blood of our brothers and sisters in South Africa," he said.
Apathy serious about election
The Apathy — It Just Doesn't Matter Coalition candidates say their coalition's name doesn't reflect their attitude toward student government.
Bob Swain, Topeka junior and Apathy presidential candidate, said last week that the name of his coalition was a response to the problems in November's election and not a rejection of his attitude toward the Senate.
"We couldn't help but laugh at what happened last semester," he said. "Apathy describes the attitude students have toward student government right now. Nobody is taking the Senate seriously."
"But we're very serious about running."
Swain said that the Senate's problems had arisen from a lack of communication between senators and the President, who was on the opinions of individual senators.
"Student government shouldn't dictate policy," he said. "It should carry with it."
Carla Vogel, presidential candidate, and Dennis "Boog" Highberger, vice-presidential candidate, of the Costume Party Coalition.
Robb Murphy, Washington, Iowa, junior and Swain's runnable mate, said that the 65 senators represented less than 1 percent of the total enrollment
Swiain said that once senators were elected, they only went to meetings and were never seen again by their constituents.
"No student senator ever asked me what I thought the Student Senate should do," he said. "What happens in the meetings is not necessarily an accurate record of what the students want."
and that their opinions were not an accurate representation of all students.
Through a grassroots campaign and constant communication with students.
Swain said he would encourage senators to talk to their constituents, post informational letters and conduct polls to find out what students thought.
He said he would propose an incentive such as a tuition rebate for senators who became involved and responsive to their constituents.
State and national legislators are paid for their work, he said, and student senators deserve some compensation for their time.
B swain said he would evoke response from students by speaking out.
our students by speaking out
"It's like kicking a lazy old dog dog
Swain and Murphy:
Apathy — It Just Doesn't Matter
to give students an opportunity to express their ideas to the Senate.
Murphy said they would take a common sense approach toward student government by listening to students' concerns.
"We don't want to come off as politicians," he said. "You have no right to promise anything without consulting the students first."
Murphy said, "Once one person speaks out, other students will respond in a chain reaction. The value of our experience is the people thinking and to get a reaction."
Swiain said they would not base their actions on their own opinions but on what is right for them.
in the side," he said. "He may not like it, but he will react."
Robb Murphy, vice-presidential candidate, and Bob Swain, presidential candidate of the Apathy - It Just Doesn't Matter Coalition.
THE SANCTUARY Allows You To Buy a Card Worth $20 of Cover Charges For Only $10
This card is good on:
This card is good on:
Tuesday 7-12 p.m.
Tuesday 7-12 p.m.
-Dime Draws $1 Cover
- Dime Draws $1 Cover
- Wednesday 8-11 p.m.
—All You Can Drink $3 Cover
- All You Can Drink $3 Cover
Friday
-All The Tacos You Can Eat $1 Cover
Card must be purchased during office hours. 10.6 p.m.
4:30-6:30 p.m.
7th & Michigan
843-0540
Reciprocal With Over 190 Clubs
THE SANCTUARY
2nd Annual
JAYHAWK SINGLES HANDICAP BOWLING TOURNAMENT
ELIGIBILITY:
2. HPER 108 bowling students
1. Jaybowl league bowlers with 9 games or more
3. Persons with an ABC or WIBC sanctioned average of 21 games or more
$3/Bowler, 35c for shoe rental
Trophies awarded for 1st, 2nd & 3rd places
Trophies awarded for 1st, 2nd & 3rd places
10 a.m. Sat., March 3 at
Jaybowl—bottom floor, Kansas Union
For entries or more information, come in or call 864-3545.
KANSAS UNION
TONIGHT 9-11 P.M.
FREE STRAWBERRY DAIQUIRIS
FOR LADIES. HAPPY HOUR
PRICES FOR GUYS.