Students Propose Merger Of Assembly, CHUL, ERG

Student members of an ad hoc committee reviewing the structure of College governance yesterday recommended the formation of a single undergraduate council to replace the Student Assembly, the student caucus of the Committee on Houses and Undergraduate Life (CHUL), and the Educational Resources Group (ERG).

Nancy Northrop '81, author of the proposal, told the other members of the joint student-faculty governance review committee that consolidation of the three existing student groups would lead to greater efficiency and accountability.

"There wouldn't be so much duplication of work, and there would be just one group to answer students' questions and needs," she said.

Under Northrop's plan--supported by two other student members of the ad hoc committee-each house and section of the Yard would elect delegates to specific subcommittees of the undergraduate council. A subcommittee on academics would fulfill the current duties of ERG, and two or three subcommittees would divide up the responsibilities of the CHUL student caucus.

In addition, there would be a social subcommittee to coordinate campus-wide social events, a communications subcommittee to conduct polls and to publish a newsletter, an executive subcommittee to set the agenda for full meetings of the council, and possibly several other subcommittees.

Straight and Narrow

John E. Dowling, professor of Biology and chairman of the governance review committee, yesterday praised the plan for presenting a "logical" way to break up CHUL, "which seems to be so big and deals with so many issues that it rarely gets down to the nitty-gritty."

He added, however, that "it might be difficult to get enough Faculty to serve on all the new committees you are thinking of creating."

Archie C. Epps III, dean of students and a member of the review committee, said yesterday Northrop's plan 'would certainly simplify things and provide for informed representatives."

If the committee were to adopt the plan when it reports to Dean Fox in February, the undergraduate student body would have to ratify it before it would go into effect, Epps added.

The Student Assembly might not accept the reorganization because it alters group's internal committee structure, Joseph F. McDonough '81, former chairman of the assembly and a member of the committee, said yesterday

When the Assembly requested the governance review last year, it expected to be incorporated into the University's decision-making structure without major internal changes, McDonough said. "I think we should consider the assembly's structure as a given," he added.

Natasha Pearl '82, an assembly member and a member of the committee, disagreed, saying "If we can take CHUL apart, then we should be able to take the assembly apart.