Klitzing wins right to vote
Nick Klitzing, student member of the Board of Trustees, was recently appointed by Governor Blagojevich to have an official vote Regina Martinez
October 6, 2005
Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich announced this week that Nick Klitzing will be the voting student representative to the University of Illinois Board of Trustees.
Klitzing, a junior in LAS, is the Urbana-Champaign student representative to the Board.
Each spring the students at each of the three University of Illinois campuses – Chicago, Springfield and Urbana-Champaign – elect a representative to the Board of Trustees. One of those three student representatives gets to vote on issues brought to the Board, while the other two cast advisory votes.
“I think he’s very aware of his obligations as the student with the vote to take the other student trustees’ opinions into consideration as well,” said Ryan Ruzic, student body co-president.
Ruzic said this campus would benefit from Klitzing getting the vote because he will ultimately have more influence on where money is spent. Ruzic said recent budget cuts have made spending tighter throughout the University, and that it is important that Urbana-Champaign continues to be a priority in budgeting.
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“I think because of the general state of Illinois and because there is an election coming up, there may be more money coming to the University,” Ruzic said. “I think Klitzing is very committed to seeing that it comes here.”
Klitzing said in an email to the Daily Illini that the campus will benefit on all issues that come before the board.
“My having the vote will help the UIUC campus because I can dictate what issues are brought up, what we work on, etc.,” Klitzing said.
Ruzic said he was happy to hear Blagojevich had named a voting student trustee. Concern had been raised that no trustee was named in time for the September Board meeting. This meant that no student trustee cast a real vote on any issue decided at that meeting.
Ruzic said it is important that some student voices be heard.
“Because many of the trustees are many years out of college, they need to be reminded that the ultimate goal of our University is the students’ education, not research or athletics or anything else,’ Ruzic said.
