The Student Government Association has begun to circulate a petition that demands the Board of Trustees appoint another student to the presidential search committee.
"The amount of student representation is unfair compared to the amount of Board of Trustee members and faculty," Katie Carlson, Chair of the Student and Life Council under SGA.
According to the petition's cover letter, written by SGA Vice President Ben Tietz, students make up 82.88 percent of the Ball State community, but on the committee they only make up 7.69 percent.
Junior Sarah Atkinson is currently the only student on the committee.
She is joined by three trustees, four faculty members, two staff members, one alumnus and two administrators.
"One student can't carry the opinion of 18,000 students," Carlson said.
While Carlson said Atkinson has done a good job of getting feed back from the student body, SGA President Jayson Manship said another student will be able to strengthen the student voice.
Atkinson said she could not comment on whether or not the board will add another student to the committee, but she did say she stands behind whatever the student body decides.
After the last member of the search committee was announced, Board of Trustees member Frank Bracken said there wouldn't be any more changes to the search committee, Atkinson said.
Bracken did not return phone calls.
Board member Hollis Hughes Jr. said he didn't know if the board will add another member to the committee either.
"I can't say anything until the petition has been presented to us," Hughes said.
Members of SGA will meet today to decide what to do with the petition, but they are hoping to have a large amount of signatures by Thursday when the search committee meets.
"We want to present this petition before they start considering potential presidential candidates," Manship said.
Manship said his goal is to have every Ball State student sign the petition.
On Thursday, Manship and Tietz spoke to the Interfraternity Council and asked each chapter representative to take the petition back to their fraternity.
Carlson has also spoken to Panhellenic Council and the Residence Hall Association.
Manship said the University Computing Services said it is possible to have the petition put online.
Carlson said she will be walking around campus all week asking students to sign the petition.
"We're just trying to get out as much student awareness as possible, Carlson said. "We have to come together and take a stand together."
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