Taking into account the recent actions and inactions in behalf of the Olympic College student government, this page strongly supports an internal investigation into the entire department of Student Programs. The original spring election that began May 18 and was subsequently suspended and scrapped marked the third consecutive election riddled with errors and controversy for OC's student officers. In spring 2008, a ballot issue forced a recount that took longer than the stated time frame of 24 hours, a violation of the constitution. In the fall, a candidate was disqualified following an election protocol violation. This spring, Vice President of Judicial Affairs Joseph Vannett arbitrarily disqualified a candidate after a review of his eligibility and proceeded to alter the remaining ballots to reflect the change. Executive Council President David Hammrich decided he had the ability to declare the candidate able to run for office without going through the proper channels including a judicial review and Executive Council approval. Hammrich was not reprimanded for his decision. He did however eventually hold a review board to settle the matter after the fact wherein the three mandatory students at large voted unanimously to allow the candidate to run. No official minutes or other form of record exists from the review board, which was held without Toni Hartsfield, director of Student Programs and leadership development present. The constitution states that the adviser is to be present during such proceedings, thus rendering the review void. Through our coverage of the student government, it is obvious that the students serving as representatives of the students and who vote in matters of great importance, including that of the budget, lack the knowledge and training to carry out their duties. This falls squarely on the shoulders of the student programs department heads, the adviser and the general cohesion of the elected and hired officers, which has consistently shown itself to dissolve at the slightest bit of tension or scrutiny. This should be evident seeing as the current president's student status has been in limbo for most of the quarter and until only recently was he officially reinstated as a student, one vice president was missing in action, another is in jail and a former treasurer was fired after allegations relating to the misuse of funds. While Hartsfield cannot be blamed for the clashing personalities and individual discrepancies, she can be held accountable for the continuing failure of the group to deliver consistent results. The student administration told The Olympian in the fall quarter that the Associated Students of OC constitution was outdated and was going to be rewritten to accommodate new rules and regulations as well as to improve clarity. Apparently an entire year was not time enough as the government is referencing the same constitution consistently in their efforts to justify their actions as the year comes to a close. The establishment of the OC food bank system should be applauded, as well as the effort put into helping the community volunteer services with donations during the holiday months. However, this year failed to yield any considerable accomplishments. If anything, the outgoing administration should be an example for future leaders to closely examine their actions and communication strategies to avoid the blatant and ignorant breaches of student government conduct that have occurred this year. On a commuter campus with an already dismal student life atmosphere, we should at least be able to count on the elected students and their adviser to keep what little spirit we have from dwindling into nothing.
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