The Associated Students of Madison (ASM) added five referendums to the spring student elections Wednesday, aiming to use positive election results to bolster advocacy efforts for lighting the Lakeshore Path and increasing time between classes.
The referendums, which University of Wisconsin-Madison students will vote on in March, also include whether to increase University Health Service (UHS) funding to hire more mental health professionals, whether a sustainability Canvas course should be required for incoming students and whether bonding authority should be secured for the UW System.
These referendums are non-binding and wouldn’t lead to policy changes, but ASM Chair Dominic Zappia said their passage could showcase student support for the initiatives.
“I think the referendums are great ways of gauging student input,” Zappia told The Daily Cardinal. “That’s not the end, but ballots are a great start.”
Discussions on the referendum asking students if they support installing lights on Lakeshore Path dominated the meeting. Proposals to light the path, a four-mile trail largely bereft of lighting, have been in the works for decades but haven’t come to fruition largely because of environmental concerns and a lack of support from university officials.
UW-Madison sophomore and Lakeshore resident Olivia Schewe spoke in support of a referendum, calling the path “scary” at night.
“As a woman — as someone with a lot of female friends — none of us really feel safe on that path once the sun goes down,” Schewe said.
ASM Rep. Michael Harry said the path's current condition is “unacceptable” and said students told him they would use the path more frequently if it was lit at night.
“The heart of undergrad residences, that Lakeshore dorm cluster, [has] the stretch of the path that's least maintained, least modern, least lit,” Harry said. “That's exactly where it should get the most traffic. But it doesn't, especially at night, and the burden falls disproportionately on female students.”
Harry said the timing of the referendum was “optimal,” adding a recent study on Lakeshore Path may have renewed student interest. The study’s final report, which was released on Friday, recommends paving and lighting the path.
University of Wisconsin Police Department (UWPD) officials previously told the Cardinal the path was safe and recommended the path stay unlit to encourage students to walk in other areas. However, UWPD said they would support lighting the path “if lighting makes our community feel safer.”
While some members said lighting the path could create a false sense of security among students leading to more incidents, the referendum was ultimately added to the spring election, though not before it was amended to address concerns on the environmental impact and possible disruptions to effigy mounds.
Referendums specify ASM lacks authority to carry out results
The Lakeshore lighting referendum was also amended to specify ASM lacks direct authority over campus development projects or timelines. The other added referendums also include acknowledgements ASM lacks partial or complete control over the institution under discussion, such as course scheduling and the Wisconsin Legislature.
One of the referendums, if passed, would have ASM “request” the Legislature grant the UW System Board of Regents bonding authority to build more student housing. UW-Madison is notably one of only two U.S. flagship schools, and the only one in the Big Ten, that lacks bonding authority, or the ability to borrow money to build projects.
While ASM also lacks control over UHS resource allocation, ASM Grant Allocation Committee Chair Emmett Lockwood said the successful passage of a referendum “requesting” UHS increase funding to hire more mental health professionals would illustrate to UHS what students want.
Representatives also noted “yes” votes on the referendums could be used to put pressure on opponents of the proposals, and lend credibility to advocacy efforts.
Referendums could boost election turnout, representatives say
The other referendums ask if students support requiring a sustainability Canvas course and increasing the time between classes to 20 minutes.
Representatives said students don’t have access to a Canvas course on sustainability created this year, which they said has been held up in administration “because students don’t want another mandatory course.”
The referendum would gauge student support for making the course, which teaches students sustainability-based initiatives, mandatory for all incoming students.
Regarding the referendum on passing time, Rep. Elijah Lin said increasing it would help reduce bus congestion and help disabled students arrive to class on time, though she said faculty may not want to extend their workday. The referendum acknowledged implementation would lead to an “overhaul” of the class schedule that might not be “feasible” for university leadership, but Legislative Affairs Chair Ethan Jackowski expressed hope its presence on the ballot could increase spring election turnout.
ASM has struggled with low turnout for decades, and in the March 2024 elections turnout fell to a record low 2%. Past referendums have boosted turnout — the 2014 election, which contained a referendum on sports facilities upgrades that led to the construction of the Nicholas Recreation Center — had 34.4% turnout.
Zappia said student engagement was important and highlighted the role ASM plays in student lives.
“We focused on advocacy referendums, but there are referenda and things that ASM can do and has done that directly impact students,” Zappia said. “I hope regardless that students recognize how important ASM elections are and that the people in this room at 9:30 p.m. in the middle of a Wednesday can make really important decisions that impact student lives.”
Other petitions for referendums, initiatives or recalls are due to ASM by Feb. 13, with the election beginning on March 10.
Gavin Escott is the campus news editor for the Daily Cardinal. He has covered protests, breaking news and written in-depth on Wisconsin politics and higher education. He is the former producer of the Cardinal Call podcast. Follow him on X at @gav_escott.
