I was raised on the notion that with hard work, qualifications and passion, no job or goal is out of reach.
When I came to UF, I learned that in Student Government, this is not the case. Certain positions are doled out based on organizational affiliation above all else, shutting out other potentially qualified students while making members of the “right” groups seem qualified on paper.
On Tuesday, the Student Senate heard Swamp Party president-elect Christina Bonarrigo’s nominations for the executive branch. Many of these applicants were qualified and quickly confirmed. However, two nominations stood out as crony appointments based on organizational membership, a practice commonly known as “legacy positions.”
The positions in question? The paid top spots of Accent Speakers Bureau and Student Government Productions, which have a combined budget of almost $1.5 million in student money.
It is well-documented that leadership in Accent and SGP is almost always given to members of Alpha Epsilon Pi and Theta Chi fraternities.
Twenty of the last 23 Accent chairmen have been brothers in AEPi, and eight of the last 10 chairmen of SGP were members of Theta Chi. The Swamp Party’s nominees this year were no different.
This situation presents two problems.
First, it is fundamentally unfair for any student to receive preferential treatment because of his or her organizational affiliation.
We all gained admission to UF based on our qualifications, and SG positions should be evaluated no differently.
All students deserve a fair shot to earn any position offered at this university.
Another problem with legacy positions is they prevent the most qualified students from serving our campus. When the potential pool of applicants is limited to two fraternities, many qualified students (especially women) are left out of consideration.
The Student Body is best served by a large applicant pool with many qualified individuals rather than a coronation of the next person in line.
Not only are these positions paid, but they also hold significant power. In Justin Hayes’ column from April 17, we heard how Accent withholds the best seats in the house from everyday students, saving them for Accent members and other “important” students (many affiliated in some way with the SG majority party).
It’s easy to see how cronyism in selecting these leaders can become cronyism during their time in office.
The Student Body should demand better from both the actions of these student leaders and the process by which they are selected. I hope you join me in demanding an end to the use of legacy positions and call on SG to fill positions based on merit instead.
Morgan Vollrath is the Senate minority leader at UF. You can contact her via opinions@alligator.org.
