Leaders must understand the situation that they are in and know when to push forward and when it is time to cut their losses and leave with their dignity intact. This is the situation our student government currently finds itself in. Overall, this administration has done, in our opinion, a stand-up job and has begun to make significant strides into the future. There have been some questions raised lately about Vice President Josh Miller’s alleged dereliction of his duties as vice president. The announcement last week that SGA’s executive committee had requested Miller to resign made clear the depth of the issue. Miller stated that he wants to resolve these “miscommunications rather than retreating from them.” While it is fair and understandable to want to make clear any allegations about one’s self, it is also important to take a careful eye to the job at hand. Miller should be asking himself if, embroiled in tension with the executive board, his presence in the SGA will be a net positive for the student body? We don’t doubt that Miller has some very important ideas he would like to use his status as vice president to carry out, but if over two thirds of the executive committee are aligned against him, how can Miller expect to effectively and efficiently pursue any policy?Furthermore, his salary of $200 a week – money that our tuition pays – has not been proportional to the amount of work he has done. Perhaps his best choice now is to recognize the fact that some deep divisions have arisen between him and SGA leadership, and accept that it is time to move on to other roles in the UVM community. If he chooses to fight the executive board’s request, Miller will force the SGA into a long and tedious impeachment process that will distract the SGA from pursuing student interests in order to settle an issue that should really be internal to the SGA. We think that the best course of action would be for Miller to walk away now while he still has his pride and can hold his head up high. Thank you Josh, but it is time for you to resign and move on.
