When Beau A. J. Briese '01-'02 asked the IOP to invite radio host Larry Elder to speak at the forum, Briese presented a record-high list of student groups who wanted to hear the speaker at Harvard. But staff were still hesitant and took over two weeks to respond to Briese, who attributes the hesitancy to the staff's reluctance to open themselves up to the voice of students.
"The [IOP staff] presumes to represent student interest but acts as though we lack the credibility to tell them what our interests are," Briese says.
But no one is boasting of perfection at the IOP. The old structure was dissolved with the intent of creating a better and more efficient administrative core.
Woodruff says that the best way to assure change or a good government is for students to attend the open meetings of the task force.
"We're inviting the campus to
come and tell us what they think," she says.