Notre Dame students will vote today to elect officials who will run a Student Union administration about which the student body knows very little. In fact, many students are unaware that the Student Union is the representative body at the University for students.

"While I know a lot of the members of Student Union, I don't really know exactly what they do," said sophomore Molly Walsh, echoing the sentiments of many University students as they contemplate the elections and the candidates.

Campaign posters elucidate proposed reforms and goals, but many voters are unsure of how these plans relate to the responsibilities and powers of the president and vice president. Candidates greet students and discuss issues, but many voters do not know how these politicians can affect their lives on campus. And the activities of the other branches of student government, which are less widely publicized than the executive council, are even more hazy in the minds of students; a large percentage of the student body is unaware of what these groups do and how they do it.

But even as students go about their lives with very little information about student government, the organization works diligently to improve the Notre Dame campus and institutes changes for which students do not even know they are responsible. The Student Union has a structure headed by the student body president and spanning six major and a number of other minor councils.

Student Body President and Vice President

The office of the student body president and vice president is the facet of the Student Union that acts as the liaison between the students and the administration; the first and foremost responsibility of the student body president is to represent and speak for the students of the University and ensure the efficient operation of all student entities and organizations.

After the president and vice president take office, they choose cabinet members to oversee the different council divisions, which include spiritual, academic, athletic, diversity and gender issues. These cabinet members also serve as advisors to the president and vice president. Run by the chief-of-staff, these advisors and officers comprise the office of the president branch of Student Union. This staff is designed to protect the interests of students in all areas of University life, provide services to the undergraduate student body and advance the policy priorities of the Student Union.

While the cabinet members are working on the various council divisions, the vice president presides over the Student Senate and the president serves as chair of the Executive Cabinet. This group includes the off-campus co-presidents, class presidents, club coordinator division representatives, Student Union Board manager, chief of staff, Hall Presidents Council co-chairs and several dorm senators.

The cabinet meets once a week and works to increase awareness among different clubs and campus groups. It controls the Collaboration Fund, which is comprised from sales of The Shirt. Various clubs and organizations can apply to use this money, and the Executive Cabinet controls who receives the money and how much will be allotted.

Student Senate

The Student Senate is composed of one representative from each dorm; the elections for these delegates are held in March. The senate meets weekly and the meetings are open to all members of the Notre Dame student body. In addition, the senate holds open forum nights throughout the year that students can attend and voice their opinions.

This branch of the Student Union researches campus issues and drafts proposals for changing various conditions at the University; the senators each serve on two committees which study different concerns or problems and write resolutions.

"The awesome thing about Student Senate is you can set up your own little committee if you want," said Meghan O'Donnell, a sophomore senator from Pasquerilla Hall West. "If you have an issue you can basically experiment with it and make suggestions for policy."

Proposals drafted by the senate which involve altering student life conditions or regulations set forth in the duLac handbook are sent to the Campus Life Council, which encompasses between 15 and 20 members including senators, rectors, and members of the administration and faculty. If this body approves the proposal, it is passed on to Father Mark Poorman, the vice president of student affairs.

Recent proposals include: improving lighting on campus, determining the status of the missing clock hands on O'Shaughnessy Hall and offering more vegetarian dishes in the dining halls.

Class Councils

Each class council is formed of the respective class' officers (president, vice president, treasurer, secretary) and various committees, such as spiritual, social, service, fundraising and publicity. The Sophomore, Junior and Senior Class Councils are elected annually, but the process through which the Freshman Class Council is created is somewhat different: each dorm selects a representative and this group of delegates votes amongst itself to choose the class officers and committee heads.

The class councils plan and organize events for their respective years, such as class masses, dances, service projects and other affairs. The officers are free to create council committees to serve any rising needs of a class in a given year.

"This year we decided we had a need for an abroad committee because there are so many juniors abroad," said junior class vice president Karen Lysaght. "They've done things such as sending out abroad postcards, which is when people from here can send notes to their friends abroad for free. And we're in the works of possibly organizing a class dinner for people in London."

Judicial Council

The Judicial Council monitors all elections to ensure that guidelines set by the senate are followed and it provides student advocates to assist undergraduates accused of violating University regulations. The board is chaired by the Judicial Council President and aided by the Vice Presidents of Elections and Advocacy. The council is made up of the election coordinators of each dorm and the student advocates.

Financial Management Board

This group is chaired by the Student Union treasurer and composed of two assistant treasurers and the controllers or treasurers of the Executive Cabinet. These members prepare an annual budget in accordance with guidelines established by the Student Senate. The Financial Management Board also considers requests for additional funds and is responsible for the production and marketing of The Shirt, and oversees the operations of the student businesses through the Student Business Board.

Hall Presidents' Council

Each of Notre Dame's 27 residence halls sends one to three representatives, depending upon the number of hall residents, to a weekly meeting of the Hall Presidents Council. This group serves as a forum through which residence halls share information about their respective events, programs or goals and receive updates about campus affairs. An athletic department representative, for example, attends the council's meetings every week to inform hall representatives about games and other athletic events planned for the week. The representatives then bring this information back to their halls and share it with the residents.

Club Coordination Council

The Club Coordination Council, headed by the club coordinator, consists of 15 other Club Council representatives, three from each of the five club divisions. These officers divide the funds allocated by the FMB among the over 200 undergraduate student organizations. The CCC also enforces rules regarding the usage of funds and the sponsoring of events.

Off-campus Council

The Off-campus Council represents the off-campus population of Notre Dame undergraduate students and promotes the well-being of this group by sponsoring functions and disseminating information to off-campus residents. The structure and organization of this particular group is left to the discretion of the two elected Off-campus Council presidents.

Student Union Board Programming Body

The Student Union Board Programming Body is, perhaps, the branch of the Student Union with which the student body is most familiar. SUB Programming Body works to provide social, intellectual and cultural opportunities that enhance undergraduate student life. The organization coordinates many campus-wide events, such as AnTostal, concerts, comedy performances and weekend movies. Weekly SUB-sponsored events and further SUB information can be viewed by reading the away message of the Instant Messenger screen name ndSUBinfo.

Contact Shelia Flynn at flynn.58@nd.edu.

• Ins and outs of student government