Members also said they believe a smaller SAC will make for a more effective governing body.

SAC member and Editor-in-Chief of the Harvard Political Review John D. Couriel '00 emphasized that a committee of 30 people has complicated the decision-making processes in the past.

"We passed the plan to make SAC more manageable," Couriel said, "Simply put, we cannot continue taking 11 people each year. It makes the [governing] body unwieldy."

SAC member and Communications Chair Shafeeqa T. Watkins '01 had initial concerns before supporting the proposal, but sees it as a move toward further improvements.

"This [plan] puts forth a new vision. I think it might spur some more discussion. We're always trying to improve ourselves," Watkins said.

The reform comes almost a year after several IOP associates proposed a structural change to SAC.

SAC came under criticism from students last year when it voted down a petition to extend voting privileges to associates.

Kathryn R. Markham '99-'00 was one of 23 associates to sign the petition. She told The Crimson in December 1998 that the request to enfranchise the associates was "not unreasonable, particularly in an organization designed to foster participation in a democratic political system."