Bushman seeks sense of unity

Graduate and Professional Student Federation President Jen Bushman provided an optimistic analysis of upper-level students’ impact on the University community during the first GPSF State of the University address Thursday night.

To an audience of almost 30 students and faculty members, Bushman, whose presidency ends April 5, stressed that students pursuing advanced degrees are an integral part of the diverse UNC campus.

“Graduate and professional students are busy connecting us to our local community,” she said. “We’re giving back to the community surrounding Carolina.”

Bushman highlighted areas, ranging from honorary societies to research endeavors, in which graduate and professional students participate.

And she reported that graduate students now teach 50 percent of undergraduate classroom hours. She also noted that more than 150 graduate students were awarded a total of more than $2.5 million in outside funding last year.

Using examples, such as a free student-run health clinic that operates weekly in Carrboro, Bushman credited professional and graduate students for their leadership in making vital connections within UNC and on local and statewide levels.

But Bushman’s praise was tempered with her concern about the community’s strength.

“Graduate and professional students are many things — but unfortunately we are not yet a cohesive community,” she said.

Preceding her address, Student Body President Matt Calabria and Seth Dearmin, student body president-elect, made speeches that tackled how tuition, student voting and basketball tickets relate to the graduate community.

“As a demographic, graduate and professional students seem to be often overlooked,” Calabria said, attributing this to students’ diverse backgrounds and separation from one another.

Calabria reminded the audience that the tuition elasticity study, which predicted the impact of tuition increases and helped guide recommendations for the coming year, did not cover the effects of hikes on graduate and professional students. He also acknowledged that students pursuing advanced degrees oftentimes see little benefit from activity fees.

Dearmin, who was elected Tuesday, thanked members of the GPSF for endorsing him during his campaign. He also encouraged graduate and professional students to contact him during his term.

“I’m going to be proactive,” he said. “We have to be in tune to what’s going on in their lives.”

Ted Kaplan, graduate student attorney general, said that a much stronger graduate student honor system has been established during the past few years but that there still is room for improvement.

“I think we’ve made great strides over the last two years,” he said. “We’re positioned to improve next year.”

Bushman’s initiatives for sparking the growth of the GPSF included paying attention to parking on campus, tuition and teaching assistant stipends, along with sending newsletters and fostering conversation in online forums.

“The GPSF is here to help,” she said. “We’ve started something that can only get bigger.”

Parker Wiseman, GPSF vice president for internal affairs, praised the group, calling his time with the organization “an absolute joy.”

“I was so pleased … to find this great community of students,” he said.

Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.