Student Leadership Council

by Lianne Ho

You may have heard talk in the iSchool about something called the “Student Leadership Council.”  You’ve probably seen e-mails in your UW account referring to the “SLC” (which you may or may not have read).  But what is the SLC?  Who’s on it?  And what do they do?

First, a little background.  The iSchool currently has a Leadership Cabinet consisting of the academic chairs and the directors of the different units in the iSchool (for example, Student Services).  Their function is to discuss leadership, to talk about the various issues they’re facing, and to serve an advisory role for Dean Harry Bruce.  The possibility of having a student representative in this cabinet was raised, but what effect would a single student have?  The option of selecting one student from each program was also considered and then dismissed, as the cabinet already has 16 members. 

So what about a parallel committee consisting entirely of students?

And so the concept of the Student Leadership Council was born.  During spring quarter, representatives from the official student organizations for each of the iSchool’s programs (ALISS, AIMS, IUGA, and DSA) met with Dean Harry Bruce, Associate Dean for Academics Matthew Saxton, and Director of Student Services Wendie Phillips to discuss the structure and responsibilities of the SLC. 

Many issues were raised and discussed, including:

1. The size of the SLC
2. The method(s) by which members would be determined
3. “House of Representatives” (proportional representation) vs. “Senate” (equal representation) models of structure
4. Frequency of meetings
5. How to represent students who do not have a daily presence on campus, such as Online MLIS and Exec MSIM students
6. The role of the SLC in student group/event funding decisions

 

As was decided during their most recent meeting on June 2nd, the proposed structure of the SLC will be as follows:

1. There will be 8 representatives on the SLC, 2 from each of the four student government organizations (ALISS, AIMS, IUGA, and DSA).
2. Each of these organizations is responsible for choosing their 2 representatives.
3. At its own discretion, the council may appoint non-voting members to assist with special projects.

 

The proposed roles of the SLC include:

1. Facilitating communication between the iSchool programs, and between iSchool students and administration
2. Coordinating events and addressing issues that affect multiple iSchool programs 
3. Analyzing current student activities funding procedures and, if necessary, making recommendations for changes to the funding process
4. Assisting in the development and maintenance of an SLC website/SharePoint site

 

Once the 8 representatives have been chosen by their respective student organizations, the SLC will meet during the summer to set an agenda for the upcoming academic year. 

Updates and other communication from the SLC are forthcoming.  Feedback from the iSchool student body is encouraged.  Please contact your student leaders with your input:

ALISS – Jen Waller, wallerj@u.washington.edu
AIMS – Al Youngblood, jalisco@u.washington.edu
DSA – Pedja Klasnja, klasnja@u.washington.edu
IUGA – Wendy Lee, wslee@u.washington.edu