Re-establishement of Sogang University Emergency Response Committee
The 49th Undergraduate Student Council “SiGn,” elected on May 20, 2021, had continued its term for 11 months until the new by-election in April 2022 as the election to form the 50th Student Council was canceled in December. 2021. On March 25, 2022, the campaign headquarters of the student council “Gaon” ran alone as a candidate for the by-election of the National Election Commission (NEC)[1], raising expectations for the new student council. However, even though the by-election was held, “Gaon,” the new campaign headquarters of the student council failed to launch. Many units failed to exceed 33.3%, the quorum for counting votes. Therefore, The Sogang Herald will delve into the reasons for the low voter turnout in student elections in recent years and introduce the emergency response committee.
New By-election in 2022
ⓒSogang University Community Ssodam
On April 4, 2022, online by-election voting began to form the Sogang Student Association. A total of 8,103 Sogangers were eligible to vote in the by-election, including those who took leave of absence and paid student fees. Seven colleges (Sogang Business School, School of Economics, School of Humanities and International Cultures, School of Natural sciences, School of Social Sciences, School of Media, Arts and Science (SMAS), and School of Engineering) were eligible for the election. The College of Economics and the College of Social Sciences could form student councils without an extended vote, but the elections for the College of Humanities and the College of Natural Sciences were canceled as there were no candidates. Sogang University’s NEC held an extension vote except for the six units of economics, section A, section C, College of Social Sciences, section C, and Global Korean Studies. The SMAS launched its student council in the first extension vote. In addition, despite the two-day extended vote, the number of votes on the list did not exceed 33.3%. So, the second extended vote took place, and Sogang Business School and College of Engineering elected their new student council.
A Failed Student Council Election
Despite the two extended votes that lasted three days, only 29.68% voted for the student council election, and the election was canceled due to Article 82(2) of the “Detailed Rules for Election for the Formation of Student Councils.”
The Sogang Herald investigated in depth the reason behind the cancellation of the general student council election. It can be attributed to the lowered expectations for school life since the outbreak of the COVID-19. To prevent infection, non-face-to-face classes have been conducted since the beginning of the pandemic, and students could not physically attend school. Many clubs have proceeded non-face-to-face, performing arts club could no longer continue their activities because they could not utilize school facilities. Consequently, as the COVID-19 situation became more serious, students could not do much, and their interests in the student community were inevitably reduced. Eventually, students questioned the very need for a student council, which has an obligation to satisfy students’ demands.
ⓒSogang University Community Ssodam and Everytime
Another reason for the low voter turnout is the anti-voting encouragement observed in student communities such as Ssodam[2] and Everytime[3]. Various articles titles like “No to the Undergraduate Student Council Election” were seen in the student communities. The articles encouraged students not to vote for the single campaign headquarters and thus prevented the quorum of 33.3% from being satisfied. It can be interpreted that many students did not want the election of candidates for the undergraduate student council. Additionally, there was a controversy among the students over the candidates for the student council, as some of the students felt that the candidates’ campaign biographies and pledges were insufficient. Students cited a single election headquarters established for several years in the election of the Undergraduate Student Council as a problem. If only a single election headquarters were to be established, the candidates would likely be elected despite their abilities and pledges, thereby getting away with insufficient pledges or visions.
Foundation of Emergency Response Committee
In the end, the Emergency Response Committee (ERC) was formed on April 11 in accordance with Articles 88(3)1 and 89(1) of the Sogang University Student Council. At the first meeting of the Establishment Committee of the ERC held on April 12, candidates for the 2022 ERC were openly recruited, and after the third meeting on the 17th, Park Joo-young (19, Dept. of Business), was elected as the head of the ERC. The student council and the ERC are different from the start. On March 25, the student council registered as a candidate with a pledge in the by-election of the NEC and ran for election. In order to win votes from many Sogangers, they created an official Instagram account and conducted election campaigns. On the other hand, the ERC was established only after the election of the student council was canceled, and the students’ opinions were not reflected because the head of the ERC was only elected within the emergency committee.
As of April 26, the term of the ERC of Sogang University had begun, and a promotional article was posted to recruit new members. The ERC conducted the 2022 Sogang Festival on May 19 and 20 and gained much attention from Sogangers.
Interview with the Head of Emergency Response Committee: Park Joo-young (19, Dept. of Business)
To investigate if ERC will successfully play its role as the student council, we conducted an interview.
1.Why did you apply as head of the 2022 ERC?
The by-elections’ s failure in March led to the absence of a general student council to support the student community. However, many student councils of colleges and schools were preparing for in-person activities at that time, so I decided to run to help revive the Student Society. Also, as the class of 19 who only experienced complete in-person school life, I decided to carry out many projects so that my schoolmates could enjoy school events just like when I was a freshman. In fact, last year’s Undergraduate Student Council “SiGn” was unable to start from scratch because all businesses were conducted non-face-to-face. However, I hope the situation gets better this year so that we can proceed with many in-person businesses.
2. Could you tell us a brief introduction of this semester’s activities and the goals of the ERC?
As this is an important time to switch from online to offline, our biggest goal is to help students adapt well without confusion.
3. What are the ERC’s limitations compared to a formal student council, and what efforts will be made to complement the limitations?
The limitation of the emergency committee is that it is not an official student council established through the election of its fellow students, so its legitimacy and roles are somewhat restricted. Therefore, it is difficult to recognize ERC’s legitimacy on the part of the school’s business. However, I have been participating in a student council since last year and had a lot of interviews with the employees at school. I believe I can overcome this part.
Since the ERC is established under an emergency system, Sogangers should pay more attention to the Student Society with a strong will.
Student Society to be Transformed by the Emergency Committee
The Sogang Herald has investigated the election of the student council in April, the reasons behind the election failure, and the establishment of the ERC thus far. The student council values communicating with students and conducting various projects to fulfill the promises made at launch. As Sogang University announced that it would convert classes to in-person starting this autumn semester, school lives are most likely to become more lively. The Sogang Herald hopes that the face-to-face conversion will revitalize the school once again and increase Sogangers’ attention towards the student society.
By Choi Jeong-in (Cub Reporter)
jeong02@sogang.ac.kr
