The Wolverine Party was founded with a single vision: To increase the quality of student representation and the scope of student services at the University of Michigan. Our goal is to make the quality of life better for all students on this campus. To that end, we are focusing our campaign on the following issues:

Financial Aid

The Wolverine Party feels that financial aid must be preserved for students. We have actively lobbied the levels of government in an effort to preserve financial assistance for students and will continue to do so. The Wolverine Party has proposed Wolverine Corps, a financial aid alternative that would trade tuition dollars for community service in the Ann Arbor area.

Student Organization Support

The Wolverine Party believes that student organizations comprise a key role in the University. Under Wolverine leadership, MSA funding for student groups has already increased by $20,000. Under a Wolverine administration, it would again be substantially increased. We also believe that groups can be aided by increased office space and by making commonplace capital goods (such as copiers, multimedia computers, etc.) available for use.

North Campus Services

MSA needs to fight for increased services for North Campus students. The Wolverine Party is working to increase the quality and number of restaurants on North Campus, create express busing between North and Central campus, and establish an MSA office with full services.

Textbook Reform

The Wolverine Party believes that textbook costs should be lower and competitive, and that buy back prices should be higher. To this end, we have worked on an on-line textbook reporting system through the World Wide Web for instructors that should help decrease costs. Additionally, we support Student Book Exchange, a textbook exchange service run by students.

Meal Plan Reform

The current state of residence hall meal plans is unsatisfactory for students. We will work to create meal plans that include greater flexibility and allow students to carry over unused meal plans from week to week. Minority Involvement. The Wolverine Party believes that the University is stronger when a diverse cross-section of the student body is involved and represented. We will work to increase the minority representation on MSA and University-wide committees so that people of all backgrounds can have an appropriate effect on the University. We also will work to expand Minority Peer Programs that assist minority students.

Student Rights

The Wolverine Party is opposed to any University Code of Non-Academic Conduct or other infringements on the rights of students. We support Advisor Corps and alternative dispute programs, such as the Student Dispute Resolution Program.

Campus Safety

The Wolverine Party has already successfully increased lighting in previously less safe areas of campus. We will continue this, as well as work to increase the range of valuable safety services like Safewalk and Nite Owl. We also support the Comprehensive On-campus Mobilization to decrease Bike Theft (COMBaT) program. We propose uniting DPS and AAPD in an effort to catch bike thieves and make the campus safer for bicylists.

Faculty Relations

We believe that MSA needs to strengthen its ties with the faculty (SACUA) in an effort to improve communications between students and instructors. By increasing communication, MSA can further progress on key academic issues for students.

Academic Issues

1. The Wolverine Party would like to strengthen the quality of instruction at both the GSI and professor levels through merit based pay bonuses, increased weight of student evaluations, early-in-the-term evaluations to allow for suggestions to be utilized, increased instructors training sessions, etc.
2. To improve the communication between MSA and LSA-SG on academic issues through joint resolutions and joint research.
3. Fix credit hour determination to be more accurate and reflective of work load for upperlevel courses.

In addition to these important issues, MSA faces the critical task of developing a relationship with the administration in the post-Duderstadt era. We feel that the next president should embody several different principles. First, he or she should place the utmost importance on undergraduate and graduate education, which is the paramount function of the University. Secondly, the new president should be approachable and available as a resource for the student body. He or she should make reasonable attempts at outreach through regular open forums. Finally, he or she should realize the importance of empowering students to make decisions, and should work to give students greater input on University committees, including the Board of Regents. Students should possess the opportunity to influence the direction of their University.

We feel that the Wolverine Party is uniquely suited to provide the leadership that MSA is currently lacking. Unlike MSA's two other main parties, we have always strived to move past partisan bickering and build larger coalitions based on the quality of ideas and consensus. We feel that MSA should be a conduit for addressing student issues, and not simply padding for the resumes of aspiring junior politicians. We feel that the key to quality leadership is inclusiveness and an open mind to all ideas. The Wolverine Party will work to include ALL members of the Assembly in decision-making and make partisan bickering a relic of the past.

On March 27 & 28, we hope you cast your vote for the Wolverine Party and move MSA and the University in a new direction of student activism, empowerment, and leadership.