Elections attract older students

Maintaining a healthy political community in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro area depends upon the involvement of graduate students, local leaders say.

In many ways, the lifestyles of graduate students naturally are more integrated than undergraduates within the surrounding community, said Mark Kleinschmidt, a Chapel Hill Town Council member who is up for re-election.

"They are living not entirely student-centric lives," he said. "They're more likely to use town services."

Kleinschmidt said graduate students are therefore more impacted by the municipal government.

Kleinschmidt, who participated in local politics as a student in the UNC School of Law, said the academic atmosphere of the University and Research Triangle Park creates an easy interface for graduate students to be politically involved.

Mike Brady, president of the Graduate and Professional Student Federation, said there are several ways for graduate students to get involved.

"Obviously the most important thing is to actually vote, and demonstrate that we are a demographic that considers these issues important," he said.

There are various council committees that have open positions that may be filled by students.According to the town of Chapel Hill Web site, as of Sept. 29 there were vacancies on the bicycle and pedestrian advisory and housing and community development boards, among others.

Both Kleinschmidt and Brady said they consider affordable housing to be the biggest political issue that concerns graduate students.

The potential for graduate student impact is tremendous, Mark Chilton, a Carrboro alderman and candidate for Carrboro mayor, noting that the birth of the Chapel Hill Transit bus system in the 1970s was in response to massive student political involvement.

One graduate student who has gone beyond simply voting is Audrey de Nazelle, an environmental sciences and engineering student, who was appointed in June to the bicycle and pedestrian advisory board.

"As somebody who does research in that area, I have access to some resources that others on the board don't have," de Nazelle said. "It's just one more good resource for the board to have somebody that actually studies the topics discussed."

Even though it's easy for graduate students to get absorbed in their studies, de Nazelle said students should be active in the community.

"No matter where you live it's important to have an impact on that place because you do live there."

David Keely, the city and local relations contact for GPSF, said it is important to elect council members who are receptive to the University.

"This is our chance to be involved with what the town does."

 

Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.