For the past year, student activists have been attempting to get student representatives on the NYU Board of Trustees. The idea is simple: voting membership and student representation from each of NYU’s 16 colleges. This includes both the Shanghai and Abu Dhabi campuses. Students have made speeches during town halls and hosted rallies, and their actions have been covered across a range of NYU news sources. With all that going on, NYU Abu Dhabi’s only contribution to the debate was a Facebook post on NYUAD Forum with a link to a petition in support of students on the board. This is concerning. As a campus, are we truly in the loop when it comes to these larger issues? If not, how do we go about making our voices heard?

Student advocates argue that the Board of Trustees is out of touch with the student body and that student representation is needed to help bridge this gap. Students acting as voting members on the board would help improve transparency between decision makers and the student body. For example, the Board makes important decisions about the NYU budget, a matter of concern for each NYU campus. Having students on the Board would allow us a seat at the table.

A first step towards increasing the popularity of the Board of Trustees was taken by the Student Labor Action Movement at NYU. SLAM created an online zine entitled “KNOW YOUR BOARD” outlining the argument for an organized structure of representation all the way to the Board, full transparency along with a direct input from students. While some might have suspicions about the practicalities of putting students in Board positions, the article references Colorado College and Portland State University that both have student trustees. In both cases having a student on the Board helped bridge the gap between decision makers and students. The idea that NYU students themselves could shape the vision and goals of the university is something to aspire to, but we need to have a much larger discussion in order for it to happen.

While some might point to Student Government as a method by which students can voice their concerns, membership on the Board of Trustees is completely different. It would create a formal chain of communication between the average NYU student and the people behind the scenes making big decisions that profoundly impact students across NYU’s campuses. It is difficult to stay in the loop concerning events at NYU New York all the way from Abu Dhabi, but it's an effort our university should make and perhaps something our student government needs to look into. Our small community at NYUAD creates an environment where students’ voices can be heard by the administration relatively easily when compared to NYUNY.

Our student body overall seems ill-informed about some of the larger issues back in New York. People often throw around the phrase “NYUAD is different,” and while that might be true, we all belong under that same purple banner. How much do we know about the big movements happening at NYUNY like the Ban the Box Initiative, NYU Divest, and financial aid advocacy? Student representation on the board could facilitate a conversation around larger issues throughout the NYU global network. What we can do for now is stay updated on the situation.

Regardless of your thoughts on the idea of students on the board, it is certainly a wake up call to our lack of knowledge about issues on other NYU campuses. As for the issue itself, there needs to be much more debate regarding the possible ways of moving forward. I hope that in the future we can see a more integrated platform for student representation, and that NYUAD students will take it upon themselves to learn more about issues that unite individuals across the GNU.