Three colleges’ student leaders revive idea for united voice

POCATELLO, Idaho – Student leaders at three different colleges may join forces for a statewide student lobbying group.

Ryan Sargent, the student body president at Idaho State University, said the group could push to keep student fees and other student costs low across the state.

“It’s important that we focus on basic things,” Sargent told the Idaho State Journal.

Sargent met with student leaders from Boise State University and Lewis-Clark State College last week to promote the plan. Student leaders at the University of Idaho have not yet expressed an interest in joining the group.

“What we feel is, on those issues that affect all of us, we can come to the state board as a united front,” he said.

But the effort may not be as easy as it sounds. A similar statewide student association fell apart several years ago after protracted intercampus squabbling.

Though this time the three colleges have already reached agreement on a constitution for the group, a name for the organization is harder to come up with.

“We had thought about calling it the Idaho State Student Association, but the others thought that sounded too much like ISU,” Sargent said.

Inter-university collaboration isn’t new to Sargent. In the past he’s joined with BSU student leaders to try to place a student on the Idaho Board of Education. Because that bill failed in the Legislature, a multischool group may be the only way for student government to be taken seriously by state leaders, Sargent said.

Student fees have been steadily rising at Idaho’s higher education facilities. In April, the Idaho Board of Education approved tuition increases for all four of Idaho’s public colleges and universities, though the fees were not as high as the schools wanted.

Fee increases at BSU were set at 7.3 percent, or $4,154 for residents for a year. The University of Idaho’s fees were increased by 5.85 percent to $4,200. Idaho State University increased 4.75 percent to $4,190 and Lewis-Clark State College increased 4.5 percent to $3,897.

Other student costs have also been increasing, such as the price of health insurance premiums offered through the state schools.