Robert M. Hyman '98-'97

Previous U.C. Experience: Four semesters, three as an executive

Key Positions: Safety; Curricular issues; Advising reform

If one were to draw analogies between the races for president of the Undergraduate Council and president of the United States, Robert M. Hyman '98-'97 would probably correspond to President Clinton.

Like Clinton, Hyman is gunning for another term as president. Like Clinton, Hyman is regarded as an energetic leader who is popular among liberal, progressive observers. And Hyman's campaign signs with running mate Lamelle D. Rawlins '99 bear more than a passing resemblance to those of Clinton-Gore '92.

But some observers have said that Hyman also carries at least one of Clinton's weaknessesl: like Clinton, Hyman has been attacked as a "consummate politician" who caters unfairly to those who will support him most.

In addition, Hyman has been criticized for failing to deal well with the council's divisiveness. Indeed, Hyman has shouldered part of the blame for the unusually high number of council resignations this year.

Hyman is running on a campaign of "A Student's Bill of Rights," a platform emphasizing safety, gender concerns, privacy issues and curriculum and advising reform, among others.

Hyman is also running on his record. Under his guidance, last fall's council passed more resolutions than any session in recent memory.

The council implemented popular elections, helped pressure the administration to return Coca-Cola to campus, sponsored the Rape Aggression Defense program and the Harvard Alliance for Safety Training and Education, and set up a phone bank to allow students to call their representatives in Washington about financial aid.

"Clearly when people are talking about the strides the council has made, that's an indicator of change. We've simply broken the mold," Hyman says.

He also presents himself and Rawlins as executives who have made a break from the council's old system.

"There's a type of experience like the old U.C. but I don't think that applies," he says. "Lamelle and I stand before the students as leaders of a genuine return to student concern. In that sense, we have experience as changers."

Hyman managed to avoid major scandals during his more than six months as president. But many members have attacked the current council as being overly divisive.

Hyman says he believes that factionalism within the council this year is not a major problem.