Bar Ilan coffee boycott: Student Union to be represented on managing board

The BIU student union said that Tuesday’s initiative is 'a significant step toward putting the students in the center.'

By DANIELLE ZIRI
Bar-Ilan 370 (photo credit: BIU)
Bar-Ilan 370
(photo credit: BIU)
Recently appointed President of Bar Ilan University, Prof. Daniel Hershkowitz has nominated on Tuesday Chairman of the BIU student union Nir Bar-Noy to permanently join the managing board of the university, in order to represent the interests of students.
The decision, which is unprecedented at Bar Ilan, came after the union had conducted a two-weeks boycott of the coffee shops and cafeterias on campus in order to protest the high prices of coffee and food.
The students had claimed that the prices of the food and drinks sold on campus have remained the same as they were last year, despite the fact that a survey conducted by the university had shown their dissatisfaction on the subject.
As the protest ended this week, negotiations between the students and the institution begun on the subject.
As of now, Bar-Noy was appointed to the board as an observer, but the union said it hopes his position will evolve into a full-fledged members’ position in the future.
The managing board includes 10 members and is responsible for the most important decisions affecting the university such as budgeting and setting regulations, among others.
The BIU student union said that Tuesday’s initiative is “a significant step toward putting the students in the center.”
“I am glad that together with the new president, we managed to turn a new page in our relationship with the university’s administration, so that  we can take care of the students, whom we are dedicated to,” Bar Noy stated.
Besides the cafeteria prices, which had triggered the step, the union also aims to  improve the conditions of dormitories on campus, as well as the exam system, among others.