Next week the students of UW-Eau Claire will have the opportunity to vote on whether or not they want to remain members of the United Council of UW Students. Many students will ask, ‘Who? And why am I voting on this?’ The fact that most students likely have no idea what United Council is and what they claim to do is not a byproduct of student apathy but rather a byproduct of United Council’s terrible outreach efforts at Eau Claire.

Can you name the leaders of United Council, its local field staff, or even the United Council Board members who represent you? Most can’t, and despite United Council’s claim of representing and defending all students, its presence on campus has been minimal, and its efforts to “represent all students” shameful.

The vote is a matter of continuing to fund United Council. For the last two years, the students of Eau Claire have paid more than $45,000 annually. Now United Council wants an increase to roughly $70,000 per year. Do you feel that the United Council is worth $70,000
per year?

Tuition continues to rise year after year, and state support continues to decrease. United Council’s purpose is to protect student’s interests, and if tuition and state aid are not the epitome of “student interest” then I am not sure what is. United Council has failed to prevent or even mitigate tuition increases, or even prevent $250 million in cuts from the state.

It is unknown what our money is going toward or how it benefits the students here at Eau Claire. It is unknown exactly who it is hired to work for United Council, to represent us, and why we never see them on campus. Does United Council deserve more money from Eau Claire students when they can’t show tangible results with what we’ve given them so far?