Nearly 10 years ago, the Alligator printed a guest column of mine about Student Government teaching me all I needed to know in life. It was my attempt to author a scathing indictment of the corruption and shortsighted nepotism of SG back in my days at UF.
After reading the article in Tuesday's Alligator about SG officials allegedly colluding to keep minority party members out of Student Senate committees, I felt compelled to share some observations.
To those who are angry about the corruption: You should be, so write about it, vote, mobilize like-minded students and do something about it. You better believe that such behavior does not evaporate after graduation. Nepotism is reprehensible, and your public protests are important. Equally important is figuring out how to work the system from within, which will be useful in battling through office politics.
To those who refuse to vote: As students, you pay taxes. They may be called activity and service fees, but they function the same way, and they fund SG. Participating in SG by voting gives you the opportunity to tell the Senate to spend your tax dollars on items you deem important, rather than someone's pork-barrel student organizational budget or SG officer salaries.
To those planning for a career: No matter your future career path, there will always be committees, boards of directors, budget cycles and organizational hierarchies to deal with. Every law firm, nonprofit community organization and hospital in the world has them. SG is not the only place to become familiar with these systems. As others have undoubtedly told you, overcoming the challenges of college outside the classroom will better prepare you for a successful career than classes like man's food or theater appreciation ever will.
My column 10 years ago was a bitter rant about lessons I learned through the process of my organization being slighted by the Senate. The real lessons, however, took longer to pan out. Student organizations at UF, such as SG and the Inter-Residence Hall Association, taught me the organizational, public speaking, writing, budgeting, management, interpersonal and leadership skills that are part of my daily life. If you remain open to the experiences, you can learn a great deal from SG.
