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SIC is a truly democratic student initiative driven by the student body and funded by an ASSU special fee that students supported by a 76-percent vote last year. It gives students the opportunity to share with the community their passion and knowledge about specific topics. As a research university, Stanford should promote such initiatives because research gains meaning only when it is shared, and SIC compliments the numerous research opportunities offered to both graduate and undergraduate students.

As a student group, SIC has faced challenges in transitioning from year to year. This underscores the necessity to raise awareness of the program among all sections of campus, especially for graduate students who have had limited involvement in the program. Given the focused nature of graduate research and strong connections with faculty, they are perfect candidates to lead courses.

It is important to remember that while these courses are proposed by students, they are truly collaborations with faculty members who help formulate the syllabus and evaluate papers. Critics of the program have questioned the academic standards of these classes and whether students should still receive units. The one or two units that students receive are important to legitimize the classes and reward students both leading and participating in the classes.

The academic standards of the program are maintained by the faculty sponsor. He or she goes over the readings and syllabus and grades final projects. In this way the courses are much like directed readings. The main difference is that SIC courses are driven by student interest and promote the sharing of knowledge between students.

Faculty sponsors are also important because the courses become associated with a department that can help logistically with issues like securing classrooms. Given their integral role, the University should provide support and incentives for faculty to sponsor classes in order to further develop the SIC program. Faculty members lead extremely busy lives, with little time between teaching, advising and doing research to take on extra roles. Many faculty have made sacrifices to keep SIC going, but time given to SIC should not be looked upon as charity by the University but be rewarded as a commitment to Stanford’s academic mission.

In light of the current political climate, ideas need not only be shared, but a wider array of ideas must be presented. Given the current University budget cuts, SIC offers one of the most innovative forums for these ideas.

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