Dear Jordan Johnson, aka student body president-elect:
I would first like to congratulate you on your first (of many) public speaking events. I had the distinct privilege of hearing Provost Joe Glover, distinguished economics professor David Denslow and yourself, our soon-to-be student body president, speak on imminent budget cuts at Pugh Hall this past Tuesday from 6 to 7:30 p.m. With exams upon us, you nonetheless must be eagerly anticipating May 1, your first day as student body president.
Let me remind you that you, more than any other student, have direct political sway and respect of our Florida legislators. These legislators hold the means to pass a one-cent sales tax that could effectively sustain not only UF, but the majority of public schools in this state during trying economic times. These legislators hold you in great esteem: not only have you been elected by your peers, but you are the physical student embodiment of our flagship university that boasts an average weighted high school GPA of 4.2 and a 1300 SAT in its entering freshmen class. And we are national champions.
I would like to say that to best reflect the caliber and integrity of our beloved university, it behooves you to clearly and concisely communicate your ideas and future agenda. Tuesday, I witnessed shaking hands, furtive glances that avoided the gaze of the crowd, the zealous peppering of "ums" and misconstructed figures of speech. This was in front of a hefty crowd of about 70 students. When an inquiry into what our SG-funded lobbyists are doing to pass legislation that will guard our university's reputation of excellence in the years to come, it was met with a pithy "They are doing their best." When questioned on why it seems unlikely that our stolid house of representatives is unyielding in their stance against a tax increase when we have lobbyists that earn over $100,000 was posed, you avoided answering the question altogether.
I hope this does not come as a surprise, Jordan Johnson, that I ask you to enroll in a public speaking course during Summer A. As our president, you are required to be on campus in the summer months, when enrollment temporarily dwindles and some of your responsibilities are less pronounced. Yes, you have recently begun a blog to welcome open discussion about our budget crisis and yes, you have also made three trips to Tallahassee to lobby those who hold our future in check. But Tuesday you stated that we have 40,000 students when we actually have 52,271.
Our current student body president spends the majority of his office hours perfecting solitaire skills; I implore you to thoroughly review the current allocation and distribution of the approximately $13.3 million SG budget, which averages $330 per student per year, to ensure in fair and balanced management. In an age of renewed interest in public service, we the students are witnessing future funding, which determines the worth of our degrees, trickle away before our eyes. When a lack of speaking ability and working knowledge of your constituency is so apparent, I feel this summer can be best used to brush up on interacting with students beyond your voting base of less than 9,000 and learn more about what it means to be an active student, a real Florida Gator- not just a Unite-machine elect.
This university and its faculty are depending on you to not only paint a confident, articulate, educated image, but to act as a liaison between those who hold the ropes to the guillotine and the 52,271 who lay helplessly on the chopping block.
This guest column was submitted anonymously by a concerned UF student.
