There have been a number of events around campus recently which give students a chance to ask the administration questions about policy and any other concerns students may have. These conversations lessen the chance of rumor and speculation and help students understand where administrators are coming from. They encourage transparency and openness and makes students aware of the people who are making the decisions. We think these are wonderful ideas and encourage more in the future.

Students were given the chance this past Monday, March 22 at the Public Safety talk to ask any open-ended questions on subjects they were curious about, and Tuesday, March 23, students were able to talk to Greer at “Root Beer with Dean Greer.” Last week, President Les Wong held a conversation as well for students to attend.

Resident Advisers in Halverson Hall were responsible for putting on the Greer and Public Safety conversations. This made it possible for students to meet officers and the Dean in person and turn myths about CCW, dean referrals and stopping students with backpacks into fact. The Public Safety event encouraged students to learn where Public Safety is coming from. Students were able to see that Public Safety’s goal isn’t to make our lives more difficult but to enforce the law and make us safer.

One of the biggest advantages of these talks is that these conversations are beneficial for both administrators and students. While students were able to better understand the administration and their rationale for certain decisions, policies and requirements, administrators were able to hear student concerns directly. Both parties were able to discuss problems students and the university are having now and how these problems may be addressed.

We wish that more students could have attended these events. Although Facebook groups for the activities were created, if they had been produced sooner, it may have encouraged more students to attend. Additionally, if these events were held on some sort of regular basis, it would encourage even more transparency and conversation between students and administrators.

These events are a great thing for students to attend. They help to eliminate the negativity that might exist between students and their superiors. They allow for a more direct line of communication between decision makers and students. This sort of transparency is very important in a campus environment and we think it’s great that administrators were able to schedule these talks and answer student questions. We hope that more such talks can be planned for the future and that students could come to attend.