Friday, April 20.1962 University Daily Kansan
Page 19
Their Achievements and Failures
Mike Miller
The University Party first entered the KU political picture in the fall 1960 All Student Council elections. Its candidates and platform opposed a Vox Populi which had been uncontested during the two previous elections.
IN DISCUSSING the growth of UP since its origin, it must be taken into consideration that the party has always been working as a minority in the ASC. This is a great hindrance in pursuing the planks of its platform. The numerous planks concerning ASC committees are almost impossible to pursue without a UP president and vice president of the student body, for these two are essential in the committee appointments.
The party platform said the party was forming because Vox had "been unfaithful in serving the students during its one-party reign and because there was a great deal which Vox had left undone."
Of the 14 points in the original UP platform in the fall of 1960, the party has successfully pursued four of them. Five of the planks in this platform had previously been acted upon by Vox. In some cases, when the planks of the two parties overlapped on an issue, Vox got credit for fulfilling its promises because it presented them to the ASC first. UP always supported these resolutions, however.
Another reason why UP has not been successful in fulfilling all of its original planks is that the ASC has no control over such areas as state support for higher faculty salaries and adequate faculty retirement program, which were planks in UP platforms. Some of the other planks concerned areas such as student discounts and cooperation with Lawrence officials on such things as snow removal and traffic problems.
THIS TYPE of plank shows that although the party had good intentions, it lacked the political experience needed to know the range in which the ASC has the power or influence to act.
On the credit side, the UP has supported the National Student Association (NSA), provided for better bicycle facilities at some of the University buildings and helped to make ASC committees more active as well as they could without control of the Student Body President and Vice President.
The party was more successful in fulfilling the platform promises of its second platform in the Spring of 1961. This platform was oriented around participation in national and international affairs.
This national and international orientation was exemplified by planks which called for support of the Peace Corps and various student exchange programs, support of the NSA and the peaceful abolishment of discrimination.
The party presented such bills as a request for a presidential veto on ASC legislation, the appointment of three executive secretaries provided for in the ASC Constitution and the investigation for a clarification of the disciplinary system (which had also been proposed by Vox either in its corresponding platform or in previous ones).
Their plan for the opening of more stadium gates and adequate personnel to patrol them at football games was taken in under the Student Seating Plan, which was included in the Vox platform.
IN ITS 14 point platform, the UP supported ASC bills presented by the party the previous year;
- A resolution to the civil rights problem.
- Creation of a Human Rights Committee.
- Legislation for Stop Day, 1961
- An outline for selecting and financing student delegations to off-campus student conferences.
The platform also contained :
plank which called for observer representation on the Faculty Senate (which is contradictory to the rules of the Faculty Senate).
The platform which UP used last Fall continued to show improvement as the party began to get a foothold in the ASC.
The party got more of its platform planks worked on, but again many of the planks were either initiated by Vox or supported after Vox presentation. The major fault of the platform was the plank which said the UP "will endeavor to see that the traffic plan which is adopted will best meet the needs of the student."
In this platform, the party changed its orientation from the previous platform (which supported increased student awareness and subsequent ASC interest in national and international problems) to one which was more interested in these problems directly concerning the campus.
The traffic plan which the Chancellor has proposed for next school year is very controversial among the student body, but the party did not fully investigate the possibilities of any alternative plans.
The platform did not take a positive stand on such controversial issues as civil rights or the National Student Association (NSA).
It proposed that a committee be established to promote peace at the Missouri-Kansas football game. A committee had already been established and was working with a similar committee from MU.
The platform stated that action should be taken to make pre-enrollment procedures more efficient, but UP did not make any suggestions about just what should be done to remedy the situation.
The platform has been effective in bringing about the distribution of ASC Constitutions, however. There is a committee currently working on the printing of these constitutions for distribution to students.
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Experience and a majority on the All Student Council have helped Vox Populi show continued success in the fulfilling of its platform promises.
Vox has a two year head start on the University Party and in this time had the opportunity to get the experience needed in writing platforms which were both concise and for the most part possible to carry out.
There are things in the Vox platforms, however, which could be considered as unnecessary. These run mainly along the lines of party policy statements which have no place in a platform. These include such things as "not supporting candidates for ASC election for the promotion of their personal ambitions" and "Vox supports continued ASC cooperation with the town of Lawrence in order that our relationship may be further enhanced for the good of the student."
NEITHER HAVE generalities been absent from the Vox platforms. For example, the party came out for "support of continued active investigation of campus problems by ASC committees." This is one area where Vox has been very lax. Although leaders of the party admit that the committee system is not satisfactory, the Vox controlled executive branch of student government (which controls the committee system) has been in office for the last five years and has yet to support any proposal for the solution of the problem.
The nearest thing which the party has done in this line in the last two years is to propose the continued submission of committee reports to the ASC. This proposal appeared in the Fall 1960 platform.
THE IMPROVEMENT of telephone service to the women's residence halls is another plank which Vox will find hard to fulfill. Although the party has instituted instruction schools for the girls running the switchboards, they have not expanded the service. The plans for expanded telephone service to the halls are being carried out through the state and the University.
Another plank which Vox has not fulfilled is that of urging the administration to remedy low wages and incongruities in hiring students, as presented in last Spring's Vox platform.
The party has not continued work on its promise of working for free ID exchange at athletic events, but it has improved the previous system. Its attempts to establish a student employment information service which would publish information on student job opportunities and wage rates, to establish a Big Eight athletic board and to develop a method to obtain student opinion on issues were also futile.
The Fall, 1961 Vox platform contained civil rights and NSA planks that did not take positive stands on the controversial issues. It also proposed a Big Eight Student Government Association that has not yet been established.
There has been much disagreement as to which party was instrumental in the establishment of Stop Day. Both parties have campaigned for a permanent Stop Day between the final day of classes and final week, but neither have been successful. The proposal has to be brought up before the ASC each year, and since both parties have made these proposals they both take credit for Stop Day.
THE PRINCIPAL failing of Vox has been the length of time it has taken for the Vox representatives on the ASC to bring about action on the planks. The party is still working on some of its promises from
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REAL WINNERS
Lawrence Sanitary
Providing Top Quality Dairy Products for 42 Years
Bill Easton
Building Winning Track Teams for 14 Years
Have Fun at the Relays, Parade and Engineering Exposition
LAWRENCE SANITARY