The Class Rep Fiasco: Is there a Solution?

published as an opinion piece in the latest edition of NUIG's student paper

At the last Student Council, held on the 28th of February, no decisions could be made because the meeting did not reach quorum: the SU has 320 class reps on its records for this academic year, yet not even 16% could make it that evening. We waited patiently in the shadowy expanse of the Cairnes Theatre and slowly a few faithfuls straggled in through the creaking doors. But it wasn’t enough.
It wasn’t that we didn’t have anything to discuss. There were the troublesome ‘non-NUIG related Rag Week’ events to be considered and there were important motions relating to the Irish economic crisis and a Code of conduct for Exec members to be voted upon. However we ended up having simply an informal discussion which was interesting, but absolutely useless as nothing concrete was achieved, and everything was postponed.

It looks like Class Reps just aren’t interested in the Students Union anymore. The question is, were they ever interested? The Students Union represents the students at university level, and the work of class representatives – the real workers at grassroots level - is essential to an effective democratic process. Only the conscientious, dedicated engagement of class reps with their Students Union will achieve any sort of positive change in the quality of life we experience on the campus of NUIG. The Students Union are our voice at the board meetings, at the academic councils, at Udaras na hOllscoil. Without us, the 320 Class Reps, the Students Union is not a representative Union, but rather a group of individuals who will make decisions based on what they assume we want – or in some cases unfortunately on what they want.

Recently NUIG’s Education Officer Conor Healy, aware of the alarming disinterest of class reps in engaging with their union, carried out a survey in an attempt to identify the root of this problem. He discovered that most classes were quite happy with their class reps; ‘they organised class parties, they worked with lecturers when problems arose and performed their day-to-day tasks well’. However a lack of information about and awareness of the SU was highlighted; reps felt that they weren’t integrated into the Union and that attending SU Council was not relevant to them. The Council was also deemed as being ‘not fun’; meetings were described as ‘fragmented’ and reps said they wouldn’t go back because they were afraid of all the arguing that went on.

So the system needs to be changed; Healy mentioned that the idea of having two reps per class – academic and social – might be an option. He also stated that the role needs to be ‘glamourised’. ‘In NUIG a show of hands elects the class rep and the main attraction of the job is the hoody. In UCD by contrast elections are a big deal, with flyering, manifestos – real campaigning goes on and a proper election is held. Reps get discounted tickets to SU events but the attraction really is in the prestige.’
But will mere glamorisation and more engagement from the SU change our failed system? Reps that are ‘afraid’ of some animated discussion may need more than a ticket to the SU Session to entice them into the dangerous war arena that is the SU Council. Some universities in England offer financial incentives for attending meetings; others offer free print credit, ECTS credits, and the Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand even offers scholarships to those who have done exceptional work. But even if such progressive steps were taken, would the situation here improve?
If a vigorous discussion frightens a student representative and a rousing argument prevents you from attending Student Council ever again, the problem is not that the job isn’t glamorous enough. The problem is that the majority of our class representatives just don’t care, disrespect democracy and despise debate (except if it’s about the abolishment of Rag Week, of course). Strong words I know, but unfortunately true. Apathy reigns supreme in our university culture at the moment and empty SU councils simply prove this point; the challenge now lies with the SU to address this problem, make itself more relevant to the student population and teach us all by its own actions how important active, conscientious participation in student democracy is.