by Jennifer Onuska
Daily Lobo Columnist
A trend is developing throughout our country at other college campuses in which community service has become a part of their student governments.
This addition to other student governments has been highly accepted and successful. Here at UNM, we currently have an opportunity to implement this same idea. This legislation recently passed through the ASUNM Steering and Rules Committee Wednesday with a unanimous vote to approve the creation of a seventh executive agency called the Community Experience. The legislation will be presented at the full senate meeting this Wednesday and, if approved, the Community Experience will become an official part of ASUNM.
The Community Experience is currently a student organization that was started last year by Dathan Weems, who thought that community service needed a centralized home at UNM. He had a vision that began with an organization that would essentially coordinate community service projects for the students at UNM. He wanted UNM to take a step in the welfare of its surrounding community. Yet, due to the group's limited manpower and large goals, the Community Experience decided to focus on one main goal. This goal became the creation of the Spring Storm.
The Spring Storm was a one-day community service outreach event. It had more than 700 students, faculty members and UNM staff representatives participating. It occurred on April 6, 2002, at University Stadium, with free breakfast for all who participated, six hours of community service around the city of Albuquerque, and concluded with a free barbeque celebration. It was an amazing event, one in which I was honored to be a part of.
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However, the ultimate goal of the Community Experience was so much more than the Spring Storm. The goal was to become the contact point for students at UNM to set up community service projects culminating with the Spring Storm as the main event of the year.
The fact remains that there are several residence halls, student groups, Greek organizations and individuals here at UNM that participate in community service but currently their efforts lack a common bond within the UNM community. The Community Experience would act as an official liaison between UNM Students and local community service organizations.
With this service, students could contact the Community Experience and ask the agency to set up their community service projects for them. This service would be available to all students at UNM.
This executive agency would ensure that the Spring Storm would occur on a yearly basis and bring community service into a new light. As an ASUNM executive agency, the Community Experience would be able to reach out to all UNM students.
This structure would be similar to the current executive agency called Student Special Events (SSE). SSE brings concerts, speakers, and cultural programming to UNM students throughout the school year and hosts a main, blowout celebration called Fiestas in the spring.
As college students, it is time for us to realize that it is our responsibility to take care of our community.
It is time for us to give back. It is time for us to stop complaining about surrounding problems and actually do something about them. Through the Community Experience, we can unite as students and make a difference in our surrounding community.
