On Jan. 7, Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Tom Birch was chosen to succeed Peter Pulsifer as Chairman of Advisory Neighborhood Commission 2E, which includes Georgetown and Burleith. Birch will lead an ANC that would seem on first glance to be less student friendly. This ANC has only one student commissioner, Mike Glick (CAS ‘05), even though three students ran for seats. The previous ANC had two student representatives, Justin Wagner (CAS ‘03) and Justin Kopa (CAS ‘03). Still, Birch’s ascension to an executive position gives students reason to be cautiously optimistic.
According to Kopa, Birch sees students as positive members of the Georgetown community and has treated student commissioners with respect in the past. Wagner said that Birch was wonderful to work with and bolstered student-supported initiatives such as the Student Bill of Rights and expanded Department of Public Safety patrols into areas surrounding campus.
Birch said that he has “no axe to grind with students” and made a point of mentioning that he has good communication with administrators at the University. Additionally, Birch said that he would continue to look for ways to increase student-resident interaction and stressed that the University was a “incredibly valuable asset for the community.”
Still, there are legitimate reasons for students to be concerned about Birch’s leadership. Birch represents most of East Georgetown, so he does not deal with students on a regular basis—the University is located in West Georgetown. Also, Birch has yet to take a position on the University’s 10-year plan, a possible contentious ANC issue in the future.
Birch emphasized that he does not feel he has a good working knowledge of the 10-year plan yet, so he is uncomfortable taking a stance at this time.
Regardless, Birch should be an improvement over Pulsifer, who often led opposition to student-friendly programs, such as the 10-year plan, and supported initiatives to reduce student privacy.
While Birch’s respectful and inclusive treatment of students in the past bodes well for the future of town-gown relations, he needs to keep students in mind when planning the new direction of the ANC.
