The Student Union plans to create a new advisory council, in which members will sit on various University committees that deal with issues of campus life. Union secretary Danny Silverman '05 sent a campus-wide e-mail Sept. 27, describing the council and outlining the application process for students interested in a position.

"The advisory council will fight for the things students need and advise the Union President and Senate on important issues affecting the student body," Silverman said in his e-mail.

The deadline for the advisory council application was Oct. 2. Union President Mark Schlangel said he has received 60 applications for approximately 10 positions in the advisory council. He also said he wants to fill the positions as soon as possible, after an interview process.

According to Schlangel, students do not need to have any prior Union government experience to apply.

Silverman outlined areas that advisory council members will be appointed, including Residential Services, Academic and Student Services, Health Services and Public Safety.

Schlangel said he plans to have bi-weekly meeting with council members to keep the Union updated on progress. He said appointed students will discuss related issues with administrators and try to think of ways to improve the community.

Josh Sugarman '05, the Union's director of communications, said the advisory council's will aim be to create more committees, where needed, and to increase the frequency with which committees meet. He said this is to ensure concerns are dealt with more effectively,

Schlangel said the advisory council is going to revamp an older, ineffective structure of appointing student representatives to University committees. He said he hopes the new system will create "more continuity in our advocacy efforts as well as more involvement between the Student Union and these appointed committee members."

Unlike with the old system, Schlangel said students will be appointed to than one committee dealing with a specific issue of student life.

Sugarman also said that in the old system, students were appointed to different University committees and would work largely on their own, with very little contact with the Union.

"By bringing them all together in this advisory council, we're going to be unifying different aspects of student life in hopes of building upon each other's experiences to better advocate for the student body," Sugarman said.

Schlangel said that the advisory council is also great training for student leaders and especially for first-years to give them "some momentum on which they can build."

Several students expressed an interest in the advisory council, but said that they did not know much about it.

"Isn't it the point of the Student Union to be concerned with all those things already?" said Hadar Sayfan '07.

Josh Mervis '08 said that he applied for the council because it provided a good way to get involved in student government and work on specific issues.

"It sounds like fun if they're actually going to get perspectives of what each group needs, but if it's going to be an ego-padding process to induct their friends, then that's not good," Mervis said.