Many Marquette student organizations branch out from campus and get involved within and outside the surrounding communities. From MARDI GRAS and its trips to New York and New Orleans to Midnight Run and its service sites throughout Milwaukee, groups organize around a wider focus than what is within the confines of the campus’ boundaries.

Service is an important part of the university’s mission and students take that to heart as they continue to find ways to integrate it into their college experience.

Eight Marquette Student Government senators recently brought the student government organization into the service scene. These senators have formed a partnership with the Wisconsin Conservatory of Lifelong Learning and will help organize the high school’s first student government. As the school is just three blocks away from campus, this is a great way for Marquette students to take their leadership knowledge and experience into the wider community.

The student-run initiative can be a great thing for WCLL. Aliya Manjee, a MUSG senator and sophomore in the College of Arts & Sciences, has said, as a primary organizer of the partnership, that it will give WCLL students a stronger connection to Marquette and help them develop leadership and management skills.

While the partnership is new and still in development, it holds promise for MUSG. As a Marquette student organization, it is positive to see student government giving back to the Milwaukee community. Working on more than just campus initiatives and working within the community sets a good example for other organizations and student governments on other campuses alike.

The partnership with WCLL seems very much the brainchild of Manjee, who first connected with the school through a local law firm. This is a positive example of how one student can start something new that is beneficial to the greater Milwaukee community as well as MUSG and Marquette’s Jesuit mission of being for others.

MUSG should really run with this opportunity, as it positively represents the organization as standing for more than campus politics. There is lots of room to grow this partnership but requires dedication and commitment from our student government for years to come.

Appropriate measures should be taken so the MUSG-WCLL partnership does not burn out after the first year. At this point, eight senators are committed to participate, but efforts could be strengthened if more MUSG members took part. More people could increase the efficiency of the work and draw more Marquette students into service, as well as offer the high school students a wider range of experiences and knowledge from which to draw.

Manjee did a great job fostering this initiative for MUSG and the responsibility of maintaining the partnership should not fall solely on her or the seven other committed senators’ shoulders. The partnership could also draw on the rich resource of campus student leaders. It may benefit the initiative to incorporate more varied perspectives on what it means to lead peers and make an organization productive.

The success of this partnership could have very real ramifications as the WCLL high school students within the new student government will be directly affected by the actions of Marquette students. The MUSG-WCLL partnership could prosper to the point where it could be applied to different schools within Milwaukee.

For the partnership between MUSG and WCLL to succeed, more students at Marquette should be involved, from particularly interested students to MUSG members and student organization leaders. This is a great opportunity to positively represent the university and the knowledge students accrue during college.

The partnership should focus on how Marquette can best serve WCLL students. It can be ensured if more university students join in and pool their resources.