As was reported on page one of The Setonian this week, the Theatre Council shake up has many of its members up in arms. The proposed leadership change could potentially remove the Theatre Council student executive board, giving sole say over the operation of the Theater Council to one individual and the faculty.
What is so troubling about this idea is the fact that, if an individual wished it, they could eradicate the executive board in favor of placing the power in their hands. Many leadership positions are student elected, out of respect for the fact that students have to work and serve under that person.
At The Setonian, our Editor in Chief is elected by our editorial board. People those who have worked with this person in the past get a critically important vote in the following year's leadership. At WSOU, student managers are elected by the outgoing manager, station manager, station representative and several other faculty, including the general manager.
The point is, students get a say. Students who work with Theatre Council do so because they are empowered to create something as students. Removing their right and freedom to elect who they choose, as they have in years past through executive board elections, is a gross injustice to the program as a whole. It could be incredibly detrimental to limit the opinion of members in such pivotal decisions.
The Setonian encourages the Theatre Council faculty to listen to the distressed cries of its members and restore the election process to its former state. Students who are passionate about their cause and their work are hard to find, and it would be a shame to allow that to falter.