Holmes-Wyne: A Proven Record
Prior to this year, many juniors did not know what kinds of events their class council was hosting. As Class of 2008 President this year, Martin Holmes has organized numerous sold-out events. From traveling council meetings to joint class events, Martin has surpassed all expectations to serve his class.
Given the way Martin has improved the 2008 Class Council, I am positive that he will be able to dramatically change and improve the UA with Ali Wyne as his Vice-President. It is true that the Holmes-Wyne platform is ambitious — but then again, everything about MIT is. Though we may not always be able to accomplish everything that we set out to do, it is far better to set the bar high, work hard, and complete as much as possible than it is to set the bar low and merely maintain the status quo. Martin set the bar high as class president and has yet to disappoint.
The Holmes-Wyne ticket is full of new ideas, many of which resulted from student meetings. The two candidates have met with dozens of campus leaders from East and West campus, FSILGs, and different student groups. Ideas such as instituting a Career Fair holiday, funding a SafeRide Bridge Shuttle, and establishing a Fraternity-Police Dinner Fund came directly from students, and are now highlighted as priorities in their platform. During the UA P/VP debate, they stated that they intended to put proximity card readers in dorms. Taken out of context, this proposal may seem miniscule or unnecessary, but it is just one example of Martin’s and Ali’s desire to advance student interests: they want to represent undergraduates to make both small and large changes to improve daily student life.
Furthermore, Martin and Ali bring to the table years of experience serving our student body on UA Senate, Class Council, and the UA Executive Committee. The Tech has unfairly dismissed them without researching their platform ideas or past experiences with due diligence. Last week’s editorial, “Mediocre at Best,” endorsed the Oldja-Kelch ticket based on a campaign that simply preserves the status quo, even though the editors would rather endorse a campaign of “ambitiously advancing new ideas.” In addition, they target the two on their proposed Committee on Institute Communication, calling it a replica of the “existing” group known as the Student Committee on Administrative Transparency and Relations (SCATR): Interestingly, SCATR has not had a meeting this academic year, and its name is not even mentioned on the UA’s website.
It is revealing that the worst criticism of Martin and Ali is that they are too ambitious. Do we want leaders who propose fresh ideas or leaders who content themselves with preserving the status quo? The inaccuracies in The Tech’s coverage should not dissuade students from voting for the ticket that has a proven record of accomplishment.
Susan J. Shin ’07 is the president of the class of 2007.