ASG to pitch in on strategic plan

Students will soon have the chance to voice their opinions about the direction of higher public education in North Carolina.

The UNC-system Advisory Committee on Strategic Directions is working with the Association of Student Governments to gather student feedback and help develop the system’s five-year plan for universities.

The plan aims to maximize efficiency at universities and ensure students have the skills to compete in an increasingly global workforce.

UNC-CH Student Body President Will Leimenstoll said he hopes there is a big turnout at the student forum on Oct. 30.

“I think the five-year vision is going to have a pretty important impact for students and universities in general,” he said.

Kevin Kimball, ASG’s chief information officer and the association’s representative on the committee, said in an email that representatives from each school will use the feedback to determine specific areas students would like to see represented in the strategic plan.

The staff of UNC-system President Thomas Ross tasked the association, which is better known by some for its ineffective student advocacy, with gathering student input in a short time frame.

Some student groups have expressed concerns about inadequate student representation on the committee.

Juan Miranda, a graduate student from UNC-Greensboro and member of the N.C. Student Power Union, a coalition of activist groups, said the public forums are a step in the right direction.

“We do see this as a small victory,” he said, adding that he sees the forums as a response to student demand.

Miranda said the organization is interested in becoming involved in the forums — but said there is still a need for greater student input.

But Kimball pointed out that the advisory committee itself plays a minor role in the outcome of the overall strategic plan, which will be drafted by the system president’s senior staff.

Neither ASG nor the individual student governments hosting the forums have had much time to plan the meetings. The committee wants to have the entire plan finished by January, when a new state legislature will convene.

“Ultimately, this means we are forced to work on the schedule — even if it is not one we would have chosen,” Kimball said.

ASG Chief of Staff Frank Byrne said the organization is looking forward to being a part of the process of gathering feedback.

“I’d love it if we had time to do multiple forums, but I’m excited that there is going to be a public forum on each campus for students to give input.”

For students who wish to submit comments online, ASG has created an email address, feedback@uncasg.org, to accept feedback.

Contact the desk editor at state@dailytarheel.com.