Our generation’s voting turnout rate is abominable.

That’s what we hear time and time again in politics and media, anyway. Politicians worry about getting the “youth vote” like it’s a trendy disease they need to catch. But I’m not talking about national or even local elections (those ones are nothing to ignore). I’m talking about the yearly election that determines which students may lead our school to victory: our campus elections.

What? Don’t roll your eyes — in the past, we’ve averaged a voting turnout of 12 percent. However, it’s high time we start putting our favorite college senators’ election Facebook page in our bookmarks section and making comparison charts to determine which student trustee, so we’re ready coming March 5 and 6. Because there are a few key players and rules that will impact our collegiate lives here.

Student trustee

This student is the representative on the University’s board of trustees. Because the board’s activities consist of more than just eating caviar in fancy restaurants, this student probably has the most important job on the ballot: He will have the direct ear of some of the most powerful people in our University system.

Now, the student trustee is just one of 13 members of the board, so it’s not like he can stroll in and declare a 50 percent tuition cut. But the trustee does serve on the Academic and Student Affairs committee to maintain our academic quality and student life, and he or she must serve on one other committee, with topics that range from health care to budgeting ethics.

This year’s trustee candidates represent several different positions. Out of the six candidates who started out (the ballot could have fewer come election day), we have everyone from alumni networkers to student-affairs supporters to pro-Chief activists. The choices make me feel like a kid in a candy store, except instead of picking Twizzlers vs. Twix, we need to pick the right person to represent us.

SORF Board

We have the option to vote for the new members on the SORF Board, which is the University’s funding board for RSOs. Whether you realize it or not, the SORF Board affects everyone who is at least slightly tied to an RSO. Plus, the board gets $6 from students every semester, so we have a right to know who’s allocating our fees. 

The board does more than act as the money fairy for student organizations; it also sets the rules that dictate how an RSO can spend its SORF money. For example, it regulates how much money can be allocated to club members for traveling to conferences and other trips.   

Illinois student senators

Somewhat of an unknown factor (admittedly, I didn’t even know my college senator until a little more than a year ago), the senators represent their constituents on the senate floor at ISS meetings, which could cover anything from presenting a proposal to renovate your shoddy lab rooms to, well, nothing, depending on what’s going on with the colleges. But ideally, the senator is the one you can go to if you have an issue.

The interesting thing about the senatorial race is the distribution of candidates between each college. A larger college, such as LAS, may have 27 people running for senator, while a smaller college, like Education, may not have any. Opportunities for write-ins are always a possibility, so if you feel like you can rep your college better than your current college candidate can, start your write-in campaign now.

Referendums

Every year, the ballot also contains a couple of questions that impact student life. Some questions this time around aren’t too crazy — affirming the collegiate readership fee and the Krannert fee. But some of the questions are a bit more divisive, such as charging a $25 fee a semester for 30 years to renovate Assembly Hall. 

The most influential referendum, though, is by far the question regarding the Chief. It’s been a hot button topic for years, and it’s an even bigger issue now that there’s talk of a new mascot. The question “Do you support Chief Illiniwek as the official symbol of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign?” is one that almost everyone has an opinion about, so it’ll be interesting to see where the ballot will take us.

Before you vote, be sure to brush up on the candidates on the Campus Student Election Commission’s website. We can’t fool ourselves and pretend that these issues don’t affect us. Even if we are seniors, the votes that we cast can leave a certain legacy upon our school, our alma mater. 

Tolu is a senior in Media. She can be reached at [email protected].