ALL IT takes is a stroll down the Lawn to see that University students are politically active and engaged. Advocacy groups around Grounds range from those like Students for Individual Liberty and Students Taking Action Now: Darfur to more traditional political clubs, such as the College Republicans and University Democrats. Yet even with all of these outlets for information, most students do not keep up with the state government of Virginia. As students of a state-supported college, it is imperative for us to be well-informed on this level of public policy. In fact, some recent events down at the capitol could have serious repercussions for the University, and students need to take notice.
One particular piece of legislation from this past January's General Assembly session demonstrates this necessity quite well. Two members of the Virginia legislature presented a bill to exempt the Commonwealth's public universities from having to release information to the public regarding personal donors. Essentially, their legislation would allow colleges to protect the identities of benefactors who wish to remain anonymous.
The rationale behind the legislation comes from recent pressure on state colleges from the Virginia Coalition for Open Government to release anonymous donor information to the public. Freedom of Information Act advocates believe that releasing the names of these individuals is necessary and lawful for a public institution's accountability.
Fortunately, the legislature passed H.B. 407, which allows state colleges to keep benefactor identities private if? that is what the donor wants. Had this bill not passed, the University could have found itself in a difficult predicament; its endowment relies substantially on anonymous donations. For example, in the University's most recent fundraising campaign, $74 million of the $1.45 billion raised came from contributors who insisted that their identity not be released publicly, said Robert Sweeney, the University's senior vice president for development and public affairs, in a Charlottesville Daily Progress article. While this is a small number in terms of percentage, $74 million is nothing to scoff at. Without the benefit of this new legal protection, the University would either lose money or have to significantly alter the structure of its donations process.
State policies with significant impact on public colleges are not uncommon. In fact, the University has an Office of State Governmental Relations specifically for monitoring administrative and legislative issues and how they affect public colleges in Virginia. Part of its stated mission is also "educating the University community about state relations."
All of this talk about specific pieces of legislation does not even take into account the impact of the state budget. The apportionment of public resources dedicated to education helps determine the University's operating budget, as well. While much of our endowment comes from private sources, public money is still important in fulfilling our academic mission. According to the 2007-2008 University Operating Budget, about 15 percent of our $1.1 billion academic division budget is brought in through state general funding.
Clearly, the reasons for student literacy and involvement in state politics are difficult to ignore. Yet despite the compelling reasons for student awareness and action, most of our attention goes to local or national issues. This is understandable to a degree. With a student body representing 48 states and 109 foreign countries, many students may be more concerned with matters back home. With such a diverse population, it is easy to see how state government has gotten lost in the fray. National issues are the most visible and affect out-of-state students wherever they are; local issues are the most tangible and easiest to become involved with, simply due to proximity. But state government falls in between: not close enough to be readily accessible, but not broad or visible enough for many students to feel compelled to act.
This is not to say that all student organizations on Grounds ignore state happenings. Many do follow Virginia issues and seek to enlighten students about them. The College Republicans and University Democrats, for example, get involved with state politics in addition to local and national races. "We have campaigned at all levels of government. This past fall we were very active in Connie Brennan's campaign for Delegate in the 59th District. We also took a trip to campaign for John Miller's State Senate Campaign in the 1st district," says Sarah Buckley, President of the University Democrats.
Still, even students without specific political objectives can acquaint themselves with current events at the state level. When an issue arises of particular importance to the University, such as the protection of donor identity, students and organizations could make the roughly hour-long drive to Richmond to lobby the General Assembly in our school's interests. Students could also consider maintaining a dialogue with local representatives in Virginia government, through e-mail, phone or in person. The more our voices are heard, the greater chance we have of making Virginia politics work for us.
Ross Lawrence is a Cavalier Dailyassociate editor. He can be reached atLawrence@cavalierdaily.com.
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