By CONNER WILLIAMS
Staff Writer
In mid-February, the Associated Students of Western administered a representation survey through the OrgSync portal page.
According to ASWOU President Corbin Garner, the email prompt to take the survey was sent to about 6,800 students and faculty alike.
About 155 people have participated in the survey thus far. Anyone that has yet to take it has until the third week of April. The survey will be active until the upcoming ASWOU elections.
To take the survey, participants must be logged in to their WOU Portal page and select the green OrgSync link at the top of the page. A link to the survey is on the OrgSync home page and takes about five minutes to complete.
The survey has two sections. The first four questions ask students if they feel ASWOU effectively represents their interests and concerns, with answer options ranging from “strongly agree” to “strongly disagree,” and a “neutral” middle response.
The second part of the survey says that ASWOU is “evaluating models of representation for its students on campus, in the community, and to that state,” and then asks students which model they feel does a better job representing them.
The first model “encourages cooperation with other university student governments to accomplish a broader student movement and its goals.”
This external model of representation allows ASWOU to coordinate with and learn from other student governments more often and effectively by attending conferences and other state and federal events.
The second model is an internal one that differs from the external model in that, according to the survey, it “encourages cooperation with different student groups on campus: with administrators, staff, and faculty to accomplish goals for the university as a whole.”
The internal model focuses on representing the students and faculty at Western and identifying issues that affect students directly.
The survey then asks participants their school year, as well as which groups on campus they are involved with.
The survey has resulted in a 39.10 percent response of “somewhat agree” that ASWOU’s student representation is effective, and a 4.49 percent response of “somewhat disagree” for the same category.
Garner mentioned that it was important to note that about 45 percent of respondents stated that they “know little” about ASWOU.
“These results have led to the implementation of changes in policy,” Garner said. One of the proposed changes involves a requirement for all ASWOU executives to take one hour per week of their scheduled time to go out on the campus and talk to students.
The goal is to hopefully provide a greater base of knowledge about ASWOU itself, as well as address any concerns students might have.
Garner encourages students and faculty to take the survey, as it allows ASWOU to gain an understanding of their effectiveness and find ways to improve.
