A long period of uncertainty at the Institute of Politics (IOP) ended this week as students and staff members decided on a draft proposal for the Institute's student governing body.

For the last several months, a task force comprised of six undergraduates, three staff members and three recent graduates has been working to create a new proposal for the governing structure of the Institute, after IOP Director Sen. David H. Pryor dissolved the Student Advisory Council (SAC) last November.

Pryor had claimed that the IOP was too insular and that it had failed to achieve its mission of meeting the interests of all undergraduates.

At an open meeting last night, the task force presented its first complete draft of the new structure.

The proposal calls for the election of a president, vice-president, secretary/treasurer, committee chairs and members-at-large. Almost all positions will be elected by students involved in the IOP, and any student who attends at least half of one committee's meetings during the semester will be eligible to run and vote for these positions.

The elections will take place in November of each year, and the terms last for one year, with committee chairs serving for one semester.

At the end of this academic year, special elections will be held to select the new government that will make the transition until the end of 2001.

The draft proposal is comprehensive, but is still being amended by task force members, who have worked all week on last minute adjustments.