Mysterious flyers questioning Queens College's student government spurred dialogue about whether the Student Association has been working effectively to serve the needs of the student body.
"WE WANT A STUDENT GOV'T THAT WORKS," read one set of flyers posted in the Student Union and dining hall in early November.
It derided the SA for spending $18,240 in student fees on stipends and $23,406.58 on a leadership retreat this past summer. It also claimed that Facebook groups were the sole products of the retreat.
"I thought it [the placement of the flyers] was very immature and fallacious," said Adjani Papillon, president of the SA. "I think these flyers hide behind a political agenda. I want to see flyers by groups that want to do something on campus other than bash the SA."
As for who may have posted the flyers, Papillon said she could not name a single person or group.
She said although nearly half of their original $99,000 has been spent, a substantial portion of it will be recovered during the winter session. She also said the leadership retreat referred to in the flyers was intense and worth the cost.
"We were up from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. attending workshops taught by CUNY administrators and professionals. We were learning how to be effective leaders on campus," said Papillon.
"They [the flyers] don't affect me because we know what we've been doing since the start of the semester," said Papillon.
Making sure classrooms are fit for their class sizes, trying to negotiate printing costs with QC, protesting the reduction to the Peter F. Vallone Scholarship, standing against the CUNY budget cuts and fighting for the extension of weekend library hours are just some of the issues the SA has been working on this year, according to Papillon.
She mentioned that the SA has created Facebook groups, but that is because "Facebook is very 'in' right now" and is a useful way to reach students about events and causes concerning them.
As for the second set of flyers, they were attributed to a new group on campus called Students for Change, who drew inspiration from the anonymous flyers.
"We don't know who is responsible for those [original] flyers," said Maria W., the representative of Students for Change. However, Maria was willing to admit that the first batch of flyers inspired her. "It's time for us, the students, to hold these elected students accountable."
SFC's flyers called the amount spent on the SA retreats "shocking" and said it agreed with the statement regarding the SA's production of Facebook groups.
SFC said that students should not pay their student fees so that groups like the "Support the Vallone Scholarship, QC Vallone Scholars, United People, Student Association 08-09 and more" can be made.
An exchange made on Facebook between Daniel Muchnick, vice president of the SA, and Emil Skandul, former vice president of the Democratic Student Alliance Party, was also publicized on SFC's flyers. The exchange was used as an example of Muchnick's "immaturity" and as a reason why he should resign.
"Those kinds of personal attacks, as nonsensical as they are, exemplified cowardice, not leadership," said Muchnick. "They are a waste of ink and a waste of paper."
Maria W. said that Muchnick, as a second-year student, "hasn't been in the school long enough to know what's going on."
She said that some members of SFC, who are also in SA, said that Muchnick and other members of the SA were given their positions for being friends with people higher up.
Adjani Papillon described the appointment system within the SA, including Muchnick's appointment, as simple "meritocracy," where only the hardest workers advance.
SFC currently consists of four members.
Maria W. requested that The Knight News conceal her name and the names of the other SFC members.
Dear Aunaetitrakul, chair of DSA, said the flyers had truth to them and are an example of students exercising free speech.
She, along with other members of DSA, denied any involvement in producing the flyers.
Aunaetitrakul said she was approached by both Papillon and Muchnick about whether she put them up.
"To personally accuse me is not right," said Aunaetitrakul. "Instead of going out and accusing groups, they need to show us that they're more than that."
She said that members of the SA lacked transparency and that there is rarely any face-to-face interaction between the SA and the student body.
Right now, Maria W. said SFC's goal is to focus on making students aware of the activities of their student government,
Maria W. also said she is seeking a partnership with whoever anonymously posted the first set of flyers.
"We are trying to get ourselves organized before we can take a step further," said Maria W. She is in the process of graduating and was unsure as to whether her members would continue the movement after she is gone.
"Anything is possible," she said.
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