I read the professional quotation by the current University Park Undergraduate Association (UPUA) president Hillary Lewis.
She promised that UPUA will do, "beneficial stuff for the university."
In the article, I learned that she neglected to attend both the Association of Big Ten Students (ABTS) conference and July board of trustees meeting. I quickly wanted to remind Penn State students that an inept president is the least of UPUA's woes.
The organization has deep, institutionalized flaws.
Its very foundation was built upon a lie.
Former Undergraduate Student Government (USG) president Galen Foulke and vice president for Student Affairs Vicky Triponey, who usurped student autonomy by endorsing the UPUA constitution, promised students in 2006 that UPUA would operate "for students" and would be similar to other Big Ten student governments.
As evidenced by ABTS recently condemning Triponey and the fraudulent UPUA constitution, Foulke and Triponey's claim last year could not have been further from the truth.
Last spring, elected students tried to change the UPUA constitution into something more democratic.
But they were denied by Foulke and other administrators through an unthinkable constitutional provision, which allows non-students to review and decide on all constitutional changes.
Penn State's University Faculty Senate must immediately investigate both Foulke and Triponey for thrusting their fascist form of fake representation upon students.
While they're at it, they may want to look into why Spanier and the Board of Trustees stood silent while the most important component of this university -- the students -- were being stripped of any and all autonomy.
Luke J. Kreider
senior-finance
former USG senator
