Does BDS Produce Antisemitic Disruption to Student Government and Jewish Student Life? An Analysis of Pro-BDS Resolutions at Ohio State University and the Exclusion of Jewish Students on Campus

The proliferation of debates and resolutions related to the “Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions” movement at US colleges and universities raises questions about the relation­ship between the objectives of Israel- and Palestine-related student activism with that of student governments and their nature and purpose within campus life. This study makes use of direct observation by the first author of two debates held at Ohio State University (OSU) in January 2018 and December 2018 over resolutions proposed to the university’s Undergraduate Student Government (USG) to adopt a pro-BDS platform. The authors examine the recognition and non-recognition of Jewish students’ right to perceive and identify racism and exclusion within these contexts. The authors further examine whether purported goals of inclusion, constructive dialogue and conflict resolution are benefited by contemporary BDS resolution debates, concluding that such goals-in addition to the formal purpose and function of student governments-are ill-served by the process, con­tent, and outcomes of debates in the form taken at OSU.

Civic engagement and academic GPA

Unlike organized activities such as sports and arts, civic activities in adolescence (e.g., volunteering, student government) have been less studied in relation to school success and almost all existing evidence consists of cross-sectional findings. In a longitudinal study, 1035 pupils (64% females, 20% non-white, Mage = 14.21 years) from high schools reported their engagement in organized non-civic and civic activities during the school year, dimensions of activity participation (e.g., intensity, duration, motives), and covariables (age, gender, ethnicity, SES, self-esteem, parental relationship, school motivation). Previous and end-of-year grade point average (GPA) were collected from school administrations. Results revealed that both civic and non-civic organized activities independently predicted increases in GPA over the school year, even after adjusting for all covariables.

Student governments in Chinese higher education: reflection on college students’ and student cadres’ political trust

This paper documents the structure and operations of student governments in contemporary Chinese higher education and their effect on college students’ political trust and party membership. We first investigate the structure and power distribution within student governments in Chinese universities, specifically focusing on the autonomy of student governments and the degree to which they represent students. Second, using a large sample of college students, we examine how participating in student government affects their political trust and party membership. Our results show that student government in Chinese higher education possesses a complex, hierarchical matrix structure with two main parallel systems—the student union and the Chinese Communist Party system. We found that power distribution within student governments is rather uneven, and student organisations that are affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party have an unequal share of power. In addition, we found that students’ cadre experience is highly appreciated in student cadre elections, and being a student cadre significantly affects their political trust and party membership during college.

FORMATION OF SOCIAL ACTIVITY OF STUDENT YOUTH BY MEANS OF STUDENT SELF-GOVERNMENT IN THE COURSE OF PROJECT ACTIVITY

The article considers the essence and ways of solving an important task of a modern secondary school - the formation of social activity of student youth. Possibilities of student self-government in the context of solving this problem are analyzed. One of the ways of social activation of schoolchildren is considered - their involvement in work on various projects, during the implementation of which students learn to identify socially significant problems and make fruitful efforts to solve them. The purpose of the article is to substantiate the feasibility of using student government projects to form the social activity of student youth. The results of the research are given, which give grounds to consider student self-government as an actual and perspective means of activating schoolchildren as members of society, young citizens of Ukraine. One of the activities of student government, which is comprehensive and contributes to its effectiveness and influence in the school and out-of-school environment, is a project activity, which today has a wider scope and deserves further study, in particular in the context of solving educational problems of secondary school .

PRESIDENTS AS PRACTITIONERS: THE LIVED EXPERIENCE(S) OF FORMER STUDENT BODY PRESIDENTS WORKING IN HIGHER EDUCATION, STUDENT AFFAIRS

A student body president’s work involves addressing emerging crises and challenging institutional decision-makers to respond to the cost of higher education, campus sexual assault, mental health, free speech, and student safety (Student Voice Index, 2018). This phenomenological study unearths the experiences of individuals who previously served as student body president of their institution’s student government and who now work in higher education and student affairs. Three themes emerged as a result of multiple interviews with eight former student body presidents, including having a reserved “seat” at “the table,” pre-exposure to a career in higher education and student affairs, and a whiplash-like transition following their term. As a result, implications involve the importance of student elections and attention to a retirement-like experience for former student body presidents.

Mentoring the Next Generation of Leaders

This chapter explores how college presidents and college student government association presidents interact and communicate, including how they can build strong working relationships and how they can collaborate to address and meet the needs of the student body. Drawing on existing literature, the chapter provides an overview of the college presidency, student involvement, student government, student government leadership, and expectations college presidents have of student government association presidents.