Q&A with Booth and Ladd

Do you have any endorsements?

Ladd: The Ladd/Rettich slate currently holds 12 endorsements. They include WMU’s College of Aviation, four Fraternities and seven student organizations. Endorsements are a new form of public support this year and the Ladd/Rettich slate has visited many different students on campus to share our vision, answer questions, and ask for each organization’s official support in the coming election. We believe that these endorsements along with the other groups we have visited signify our dedication to reaching out and speaking to many diverse groups of students.

Booth: Currently, the Booth-Blaszczyk team has seven endorsements from Alpha Omicron Pi, American Humanics Student Organization, Public Relations Organization, Hillel, the Sales and Business Marketing Association, and the Order of Omega. Our team is awaiting more endorsements from other organizations; however, our main goal in this campaign is to get the Booth-Blaszczyk message out to students on how we can be their voice to the WMU administration and ensure WMU stays student-centered.

How can you make WSA benefit students who may not have the time to be involved with the senate or RSOs?

Booth: The work and effort of the WSA are broad and far-reaching beyond the popluation of students involved in Registered Student Organizations. Whether it be advocating for sustainability measures to bring down campus energy costs, lobbying for additional funding for higher education in Lansing, or opening up lines of communication between students and university administration here at WMU – WSA effects each and every single student at WMU.

Ladd: The biggest problem, and one of our top two initiatives, is the lack of student councils in every academic college. Because not every student is part of an RSO the Ladd/Rettich slate will create, with the experience that I’ve had as a founding member of the Aviation Student Council, student councils in every academic college. These councils will be a critical part of the student voice on campus; the College of Aviation has proven this with the ASC. It is of the utmost importance that these, student operated, councils exist in every college. The Ladd/Rettich slate will ensure this happens.

What are three things that you will do within your first two months as WSA president?

Ladd: 1) Conduct an exhaustive search of the student body to find students who are perfect for our executive cabinet, not find executive cabinet positions that are perfect for our friends. 2) Conduct a complete overhaul of our current Allocations Bylaws and Guidelines. These documents govern how, what, and to whom, the Allocations Committee of the WSA allocates money to and have remained unchanged for too long. 3) We will lay a strong foundation for our overall plan to establish academic student councils.

Booth: 1. Select an executive cabinet made up of a diverse group of students that are a true representation of the students at WMU.
2. Immediately contact Kalamazoo community leaders to begin conversation and have student representation on Kalamazoo development boards.
3. Meet with top WMU administrators to start conversations about tuition and what WMU will be encountering in the upcoming year. Furthermore, we will work with the Sustainability Fund Initiative authors and researchers to develop a well constructed sustainability initiative while developing education outreach plans for WMU upon students’ return in the fall.

Do you think the Sustainability Fund Initiative has been given enough time to be discussed by the WSA senate and student body? Also, are you in support of the $8 fee for fall and spring semesters, and $4 for the summer semesters?

Booth: Currently Western Michigan University is known as a Student Centered Research University. If the Sustainability Fund Initiative passes it will up hold and provide a broad spectrum of research opportunities for students. We support the idea of the SFI but there a few concepts we would like to develop and incorporate more within the WSA.
Ladd: No, I do not believe that the SFI has been given enough time to be discussed by the student body or the WSA Senate. I believe to fully grasp the potential the SFI has to offer it would be better suited on next year’s ballot. However, unlike our opponents that voted no on the resolution, the Ladd/Rettich slate is excited to work with the referendum group whether or not the fee is levied for the 2010-2011 academic year to lay down a clear and solid foundation for the SFI in the future. Sustainability is one of the three pillars of Dr. Dunn’s administration and it also plays a large role in the Ladd/Rettich platform.

What do you think of differential tuition, which is charging different tuition for different academic programs?

Ladd: Differential tuition holds a great opportunity for WMU. Simply stated differential tuition places the responsibility and ability to control each college’s budget in the hands of that college alone. It the case of colleges that are currently in high demand it will cost students more for upper level course work and this price increase will allow the college to hire the most qualified faculty and fully develop their respective academic program. The ability to develop each college based on their demand offers a huge incentive for the deans of each college to recruit students and offer top-notch academic programs.

Booth: This will allow the WMU administration to better and more effectively allocate money throughout the university as to better financially support our academic programs. The practice is already done by other large Michigan institutions and we think it is time for our academically dynamic university to follow suit.

How would you go about reforming the allocations process?

Booth: I would like to see the allocations guidelines and bylaws reformed by campus leaders who use allocations on a regular basis, leaders who are not familiar with the process, and other student leaders from diverse organizations. My plan is to ensure that allocations are more accessible to all student organizations and less intimidating. Furthermore, I would like to see an evaluation from organizations that use allocations to ensure that money is being spent wisely.

Ladd: As mentioned in question 3 the Ladd/Rettich slate believes that the allocations process is in dire need of revision. We will first select a chairperson that is competent, ethical, experienced with finances, and will evaluate the overall budget request and it’s cultural effect on campus. When redrafting and revising the bylaws and guidelines for the committee we will include student leaders from many different organizations and other interested parties. The rules must be revised in a way that will open funding to more student groups on campus instead of just groups that have traditionally received funding.

What is something new that you will bring to the WSA?

Ladd: As a three-year executive board member of the Aviation Student Council and a three year member of the Western Student Association, I will bring a solid track record to this position. In the past several years presidential candidates have had little to no experience in the WSA Senate or the executive branch, I offer three years of senate experience and two years of executive branch experience. Another new contribution is the addition and serious plans of Greek life into the WSA. Greek life makes up a significant portion of our student body at WMU and WSA has traditionally been less than welcoming to these students and it is something that cannot continue.

Booth: The Booth-Blaszczyk team has been researching the idea of starting a student scholarship program. This has been done by many other Michigan university student governments and we think the opportunity exists here at WMU too. This is a preliminary idea and with further talks with the WMU administration and research of best practices, we would like to implement this program that would be beneficial to students.

Being a full-time student is time consuming in itself, how much time can you realistically devote to WSA next year? How many credits will you be enrolled in?

Booth: Time management and organization is essential to the success of leaders in any organization. Through my experiences, I have been able to enhance those skills and schedule my time efficiently between work, school, and my other organizations. Next year, I will be finishing my degree at WMU while taking a light load of 12 credits per semester.

Ladd: Being an RSO president, specifically student body president, is highly time consuming, to think otherwise is simply foolish. My skills in time management have become quite well refined in the past couple of years during my tenure in the WSA and the numerous other student organizations I have participated in. I can, and already have, devoted in excess of 30 hours per week to the WSA. I will be finishing my senior year with between 15-16 credit hours per semester and currently only hold one job as speaker of the senate for the WSA.

How has your course work prepared you for the role of president?

Ladd: My course work here at WMU has a very strong focus on business management. The classes that have prepared me for this position include law, management, economics, anthropology and political science. While my course work has attributed to my overall success at WMU, I do believe a textbook can only offer a limited amount of leadership knowledge. Leadership is something that you must experience outside of the classroom and that is something that I have done for the majority of the last eight years.

Booth: As a public relations major and nonprofit leadership minor, I have taken courses in leadership, organizational communications, research, business, grant writing, and intercultural communications. These classes have all taught me the basics of how to ethically and effectively lead an organization while establishing relationships with fellow constituents which ultimately yields positive results.

What are three non-WMU related issues that are most important to you?

Booth: 1. The Kalamazoo community is very important to me and the rest of my slate. Kalamazoo is now our home and we want to see the community thrive on so many levels.
2. Higher education funding is also an important to me. Though it may be related to WMU, it is more closely related to the success of Michigan’s economy. I would like to see higher education funded more to entice graduates to stay in Michigan.

3. Lastly, service-learning is something that is important to me as well as the success of any leader. I think that service-learning is something that all students should do to enhance their skills as a leader and a diverse individual.

Ladd: Politics in America are something I am very passionate about, specifically taxes and policies geared toward raising revenue for the federal government. When I have free time I enjoy watching C-SPAN to catch up on the latest ‘drama’ in Congress. Also, freedom of speech and the First Amendment are very near and dear to my heart. In the U.S. people should never fear for what they believe in or say and should be able to voice their discontent at all times. Finally, I believe that community involvement in the form of service is essential to the progression of our society. In general I believe more people should give back to their community more often.

Why does WSA matter?

Ladd: The WSA is important because it is the largest, student run forum for student voices on campus. When an issue is raised, the student leaders in the WSA work tirelessly with other students to find a solution. They present this solution to university administration as a clear, concise and wholly accepted vision of the students instead of just a singular complaint. Without the WSA, it would be difficult for university administration to provide the best solutions for all students or to even hear a collective voice. However, the WSA is not just student leaders meeting with university administration; students are the foundation and most important part of the WSA.

Booth: The WSA is an extremely important asset to WMU. The WSA ensures that student’s voices are heard on academic and administrative levels. It is where students can come and speak as a unified voice for one goal: the make this university a better place.

Related Articles

Aaron Booth’s profile
Andrew Ladd’s profile
Video of first debate
Video of second debate

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Posted by heraldstaff on Mar 14 2010. Filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry

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