Polls calling for students to reaffirm MoPIRG (Missouri Public Interest Research Group), a student organization working to address social problems, open March 10 and 11 at STLCC-Meramec. The election is required every two years. Meramec is home to the only PIRG chapter in Missouri.
Andrea Royals
– News Editor –
Polls calling for students to reaffirm MoPIRG (Missouri Public Interest Research Group), a student organization working to address social problems, open March 10 and 11 at STLCC-Meramec. The election is required every two years. Meramec is home to the only PIRG chapter in Missouri.
“This spring, MoPIRG student volunteers and interns are working on campaigns to address hunger and homelessness, push for more public transit, and educate students and elected officials about solutions to global warming,” said Sarah Clader, MoPIRG campus organizer at Meramec.
A forum to debate the presence of MoPIRG at Meramec was held in the Student Center on March 3. MoPIRG was represented by two students, Trang Nguyen and Samantha Beiermann, who advocated for the organization’s presence at Meramec.
“MoPIRG has the power to make real change on social issues,” Nguyen said. “MoPIRG is good for the community, not just for Meramec students.”
Nguyen said her work on the MoPIRG hunger and homelessness campaign has helped her improve her speaking and organizational skills, and assisted her in developing a leadership role on campus.
Opposition to MoPIRG was met by student Steven Vollenweider, who said the organization funds inefficiently run projects and that the $7 waived fee students face at the time of registration is often paid because of misconceptions about the organization.
“The funds students give do not fund student activities,” said Vollenweider, president of NOpirg, a campus organization committed to removing MoPIRG’s $7 fee from Meramec registration forms.
Vollenweider, who previously volunteered in MoPIRG campaigns, initially agreed to pay the waived fee. He said that while first registering for classes at Meramec, he was not provided with the information required to make an educated decision to accept the donation.
Vollenweider, arguing that a negative sign-off is a hidden fee, said the MoPIRG fee is “a deceitful way to rip off students.”
Student Andrew Shapiro, who previously served as a PIRG campus organizer in Colorado, said that Student Governance Council has already taken some of the issues MoPIRG advocates into thier own hands, and that they are more successful in achieving these goals.
“MoPIRG will bring their mobilizing efforts to your campus,” Shapiro said, “but for a price.”
NOpirg argues that the management of MoPIRG is inadequate because campus organizers frequently change, sometimes more than once per semester, and that “the results on our campus are not enough.”
Professor Joseph Chesla agrees that the operations of MoPIRG may be insufficient, and he has since held back his endorsement of the organization in the reaffirmation election.
On the other hand, professor Tony Frost endorses the organization. “MoPIRG allows our students the opportunity for a broadened educational experience with activities performed outside the classroom.”
Other faculty advocate that MoPIRG is beneficial to the Meramec campus and urge students to reaffirm its presence in the election.
“Engaging students into real political action, mobilizing citizens to fight for what is needed, and refusing to accept the same old tired excuses is what organizations like MoPIRG are all about,” said professor John Messmer, Ph.D. “It would be another blow to student life on the Meramec campus if MoPIRG disappears.”
While MoPIRG has received several endorsements from faculty members, Vollenweider says that MoPIRG campaign procedures are in violation of the ethics that prohibit faculty sponsors from endorsing the organization.
MoPIRG adviser Dr. Robert Lee believes that students who do not support the organization do so because of political reasons and that NOpirg’s contribution to the democratic process is limited.
“Rather than join and make a difference, they want MoPIRG kicked off campus,” Lee Said. “I’m not convinced NOpirg helps the democratic process because it is only a one-time voice for students. If it does [help], it would have an agenda and goals.”
Neither MoPIRG nor NOpirg would like to see the second option of the ballot, which provides for a voluntary fee, chosen in the election.
“With a positive check-off, there is not as much data,” said Lee. “The waived option lets us estimate how much money MoPIRG will receive for the semester.”
However, at the last Student Governance Council meeting on March 2, students upheld their decision to include the voluntary fee.
Polls open March 10 and 11 in the Communications North and Student Center lobbies from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and in the Communication North and lecture hall lobbies from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
