'Democratic' Reorganization Of Student Council Proposed

As a result of almost constant pressure by a militant committee set up during the summer term to investigate Student Council activities, the Council bas slated a study of its constitution, by laws, and procedure as the first item on a busy fall agenda, when the Council meets this evening in Phillips Brooks House.

Organized in August, after the summer council has turned down a proposal by the Liberal Union to study the student legislative body, the committee has drafted a new constitution which it has submitted for approval for approval by University authorities. An early meeting of the investigating committee has been scheduled for this week.

Primary object of the committee, is that of making the Council more responsible to the student body. Deploring the individual students lack of contact with the Council and its activities, the committee has recommended that the Council "keep the student body informed of its action" by releasing annual and individual meeting reports to "recognized undergraduate publications and bulletin boards."

Also proposed by the committee were measures to "place the Council on a House basis" with frequent House meetings to discuss Student Council issues, and to schedule Council elections twice each year, in February and in May.

Raymond J. Considine '48, of Leverett House, was elected to head the investigating committee, after a series of six meetings, one in each House, during August. The committee was set up after the HLU and the Harvard Chapter of the American Veterans Committee united in calling for a "more democratic Council."

The Summer committee, headed by Edric Weld '48, declined to take action on the HLU proposal for the study because it was felt it "would be a grave mistake, in the absence of two-thirds of the student body during the summer term." It was also felt that summer Council has no power to make such a more, inasmuch as the full Council membership would not be present until this fall.

Accordingly, on July 26, the HLU and the AVC joined in holding the series of six open discussion meetings under the sponsorship of a committee of three: Charles Sellers, Jr. '45, president of HLU; Robert Koehl '49, of the AVC; and Joseph II. Sharlitt '45, assistant editorial chairman of the Crimson. This committee was later enlarged to include membership from each House.

By the end of the summer term, O'Donnell, in the president's report on summer's activities announced that a complete study of the Council "with the purpose of increasing student participation and administrative efficiency" the "most important of all" Council plans for the fall term beginning today.

O'Donnell's report also stated that the Council, "in four of its most important activities (representation at the Prague International Student Conference, tutorial system reports, food conservation program, and a student activities center memorial), asked for and received decisive backing in direct student balloting."