Tuesday, Nov. 19, 1985
Student Senate Elections
University Daily Kansan
7
Turnout
Continued from p. 1
Percent of students voting in Student Senate elections
1969 30.2 1978 8.5
1970 26.0 1979 14.5
1971 28.0 1980 11.3
1972 22.0 1981 11.0
1973 14.0 1982 14.0
1974 13.2 1983 14.5
1975 14.0 1984 (spring) 9.8
1976 16.1 1984 (fall) 17.4
1977 19.6 Source: Kansan files
'Obviously the student body in recent years hasn't been as interested in issues as it has been in previous years.'
David Ambler
vice chancellor for student affairs
participated in KU student government because Senate had no power
"It if meant something, people would participate more," he said.
"To participate in something, you must either feel good about what you're doing morally, or you must get some return. In student government, I don't know what that return is."
Jeff Polack, student body vice president, said student government had power because it distributed $1.3 million collected from student activity fees. This money is distributed to the Kansas Crew team, the international Club and the Solar Energy Club.
Polack also said the Senate was responsible for protecting student rights.
"It's a matter of making what we can of it," he said. "We have the power of persuasion."
Ambler said student government had the power to recommend solutions to common problems at the University, to influence administrative decisions that affect student life and to allocate the money collected from student activity fees.
Michelle Bradshaw, Olathe sophomore, said she voted last fall and would vote again next year. But she didn't think the Senate had much power.
"I haven't been able to see how student government directly affects me," she said. "I haven't seen any results from the government, but I vote because it's my right and my responsibility."
Polack said he thought the reason for last year's high voter turnout was the number of coalitions that ran and the referendum that appeared on the ballot. The referendum urged the Kansas University Endowment Association to divest from U.S. companies doing business in South Africa.
He said the two coalitions running in this year's election — Chrysalis and Common Sense — didn't offer much of a choice for voters.
Despite the fewer number of coalitions running and the quiet campaign this year, some students, such as Dr. OcHee, still will show up at the polls.
"There is nothing radically different between them, issue-wise, but there is some personality wise," he said. "There's not much of a choice. It's more of an issue of what went on in the Senate during the past year."
"I vote because I like to know that I'm heard," said McGhee, Haven sophomore. "I like to have my say in stuff."
She said she thought part of the reason voter turnout was low was because the Senate didn't encourage students to attend meetings and
John Leuthold, Columbia, Mo. senior, said he had voted every year since coming to KU.
David Hickman, Overland Park senior, said he didn't vote in last year's elections because he didn't get around to it. He said he voted in the previous year's elections, however.
"My vote makes a difference within the context of an election," he said. "It requires a bunch of people like myself to vote to make a difference. But, if I don't vote, then I don't have the potential to make an impact."
"The percent that actually votes is low," he said. "That's sad. They complain, but they don't take action by voting."
didn't seem as if they wanted students to participate.
Student involvement shows in interest groups, not polls
By Theresa Scott Of the Kansan staff
Students aren't apathetic about voting in campus elections but are instead expressing their political interests in other ways, a KU professor of political science says.
Alan Cigler, professor of political science, says students are turning from casting ballots in student government to participating in special-interest groups.
"Saying there is an election turnout decrease is not the same as saying student interest is down." Cigler said recently. "Students are involved in interest groups and are channeling their efforts in different directions.
associations was increasing
"Apathy is the wrong word because it implies that there was a great student interest and that now students are lazy or unconcerned. I am not interested in them, but they are putting more of their attention on specific interests."
Cigler said he thought that student involvement on college campuses had increased — but not necessarily in student government. He said student involvement in such groups as departmental clubs, foreign student organizations and graduate student
"People are getting smart because they exert more influence from groups than from elections," he said.
London Bonds, assistant director of the office of student organizations and activities, which was formed in 1978, said the number of groups registering with the office was always rising.
Groups that register with the student organizations and activities office are classified as academic, cultural, governmental, honorary, political, military, religious, recreational/sports, service, special interest, fraternities or sororities.
Bonds said it was University policy for student groups to register with the office. By registering, groups gain benefits such as being able to request student activity fee financing, equipment, use University services and use the University's name in the group's title.
The Senate allocates student activity fees to these groups. This year, the Senate received $1.3 million from student activity fees for distribution
Burdett Loomis, professor of political science, defined an interest group as "people with similar attitudes working toward a goal or like-minded people trying to get something done."
He said that because of the lack of power in the student government, students would be better off spending their time participating in interest groups than in working in student government.
"Students would get more gratification if they became involved with interest groups — not necessarily political ones, but more like intramurals or sororities and fraternites."
"Student government has no real power," Loomis said. "It's totally symbolic. It's a game that a certain small group of people play.
Jeff Polack, student body vice president, disagreed with Loomis.
"Government is as important as people make it," Polack said. "Professors and faculty don't care because they have tenure. We deal with the administration and they take us more seriously."
David Ambler, vice chancellor for student affairs, said the structure of Kris administration provided for research influence in the student government.
Ambler said, however, that
sometimes student government didn't take advantage of all the opportunities to exert its power.
Ambler said that it's always been true that there are a lot of students involved with extracurricular activities related to academic work or social and recreational issues of interest.
"It's not that it doesn't potentially have lots of power," he said. "It depends on how well and how much of this power is used.
Ambler said these extracurricular activities included intramural sports, fraternities, sororites and special-interest groups.
Ray Nichols, chancellor emeritus,
said more student groups existed today than before the office of student organizations and activities was formed.
"Student Senate doesn't do much in these areas because those groups are autonomous." Ambler said.
"The groups aren't as active as they used to be, but there are more of them," he said. "They were advocacy groups supporting specific causes and used to march into the chancellor's office.
"A small group can make a lot of noise."
'Students are not particularly less interested, but they are putting more of their attention on specific interests..'
- Alan Cigler professor of political science
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