The Legislative Breakfast is a yearly opportunity for students to communicate one-on-one with Idaho legislators about issues in higher education.
“This is an opportunity for us to reclaim the student voice and speak about issues that are important to us,” said ASUI President, Samantha Perez.
The breakfast will be held Jan. 25.Perez said the older generation doesn’t think students care about issues dealt with in the legislature.
“They think we just want to go to school and don’t care about decisions that are made,” Perez said. “But the truth is that there are students that do care, and they are passionate about these issues — they’re passionate about higher ed.”
Bruno Bennett, who has been selected as the ASUI lobbyist for the 2012 legislative session, is organizing the event.
“I went last year and it was a really great experience,” Bennett said. “It’s a really good opportunity for any major to gain an experience and build their resume and open up opportunities in their future.”
Thirty-five students will have the opportunity to attend the legislative breakfast. This is the first year that students are able to apply for the opportunity — in previous years the spots were appointed to students.
Former ASUI student lobbyist, Joe Black, said the committee is looking for the best and brightest students to represent the University of Idaho.
“It’s a really great educational and networking experience for all of the students that are involved,” Black said. “They get to see state government first-hand, and I think that’s valuable for students even if they are not interested in politics because state legislature is making decisions about their lives and about the way that they live their lives.”
The 35 students selected will represent each of the 35 legislative districts in Idaho and meet with the three legislators from their assigned district.
Black said ideally, the goal is to send a student who is actually from each district, but in some cases it’s just not possible and students may be assigned to a different district.
This year, students will be asked to focus on two specific issues when meeting with their legislators.
“The first is faculty raises, and the second is financial aid for students,” Bennett said.
Bennett said UI faculty has gone nearly five years without receiving a raise, and as a result it is becoming increasingly difficult to encourage faculty to remain at the university.
“If we continue on this way we’re just going to lose valued faculty members,” Bennett said.
Black said if the university is to remain competitive and recruit the best faculty it must be able to show that faculty have room to expand their roles and earn more compensation as they continue their commitment to the university.
Money for faculty raises comes from the Change in Employee Compensation funding pool. Every institution is behind on this funding. UI is approximately $2 million behind, while BSU is nearly $10 million behind on CEC funding.
“CEC funding, even the slightest raise in that, we feel would be a great step in the right direction,” Black said.
All undergraduate students are eligible to apply to attend the legislative breakfast.
“We’re looking for people with leadership experience, people who have a lot of Vandal pride, and people who are very passionate about education and their educational experience,” Bennett said.
Perez said she encourages all students to apply because it’s really important that the student voice is represented at the state legislature.
All expenses for the trip are paid for by ASUI and the Alumni Association, and students will receive excused absences from their classes for the three days spent in Boise.
“I encourage students of all ages, abilities, and majors to apply,” Bennett said. “It’s definitely a beneficial experience to anyone who has the privilege of going on this trip.”