We were almost done planning this edition of The Skyline View, when our staff adviser, Nancy Kaplan-Biegel, hinted to us that we might be missing a crucial story.

I felt it too, since there definitely seemed to be something missing from that first section of whiteboard, traditionally dedicated to news, but I couldn’t place exactly what it was. It was something that happens every year in May and we had all seemed to have temporary amnesia in regard to what we were missing.

We had all seemed to have overlooked that the student government elections were coming up and we had no idea when it was happening, or even who was running. Imagine how pathetic it feels to be the school newspaper and realize you’ve failed to keep track of your own student government. Imagine what would happen if The New York Times forgot to cover the 2004 presidential election between Bush and Kerry. That would be a major story to miss!

Ok, ok, so this isn’t the New York Times and we’re not talking about the United States presidential election. It’s just a shame that we seem to have fallen into the same trap that the rest of Skyline has: student apathy. It seems that community college students are so preoccupied with the other aspects of their lives such as work, family and homework, that they only see Skyline as a place to take their classes and to get out as soon as possible.

For some people, the demands of their daily lives may be too much to be able to hold down a position in student government, but many others are missing out on a valuable opportunity to be a real decision maker at the school. Associated Students of Skyline College (ASSC) don’t just plan campus events they also take part in shared governance. Student government represents all Skyline students when they help make decisions regarding things that are important to college students, such as curriculum and graduation requirements.

ASSC regularly makes visits to the bigger governments such as the state capitol or to the White House and speak to legislatures about issues that concern college students.

There are currently five members on student council with only one member planning on returning in the fall. Skyline plays host to a miniature community of sorts. We have our library, our auto department, our cosmetology department and our newspaper. Try not to forget about your leaders.