The Issue: Castillo-Sievers to cut 40 positions from UGBC What we think: Downsizing a much-needed change
UGBC president and vice president-elect Jenn Castillo and Dan Sievers have announced that they will be cutting their cabinet to 63 students, down from the over 100 appointed positions filled this past year. While they reserve the right to add positions during the application process, we applaud them for making these drastic, but much needed, cuts and implore them to stick close to the released number of positions.
Most of the cuts stem from the elimination of co-directorships. These cuts are made in the hope that trusting just one person to take on the responsibilities of a position instead of two will encourage said student to take more initiative with the station rather than getting bogged down with work as, previously feared.
Co-directorships have been an organizational disaster for the UGBC over past years, as they reduce the decision-making power of department heads and hinder the efficiency of the organization as a whole. An organization as wide-reaching as the UGBC is intrinsically going to be a bureaucratic organization, but this does not mean it cannot become a streamlined one. Eliminating co-directorships is a well-guided, prudent measure toward establishing such an organization.
The consolidation of the Board of Trustees' staff and the executive staff from five positions to two is another practical bid. Consolidating these staff positions will allow the two members to work effectively with the president, vice-president, and chief of staff on some of the most important and wide-reaching responsibilities of the UGBC, including long-term initiatives and Board of Trustees presentations.
Castillo and Sievers will also set clear-cut goals for each section within the UGBC; the chief of staff will monitor the progress of these goals throughout the year. This process will provide much needed oversight of the innumerable operational units within the UGBC and will ultimately hold leaders accountable for what they have and have not accomplished.
Castillo-Sievers have clearly and effectively addressed possibly the largest organizational problem faced by the UGBC. The mammoth organization has been limited by its size in the past, which has posed difficulties for the upper leadership and has cost students valuable programming and change.
While the change has yet to happen, it is extremely refreshing to see the newly-elected leaders actively and aggressively addressing such an important problem with clear, practical, and hopefully effective solutions.
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