Representative resigns from Undergraduate Senate

Mandla Msipa ’26 announced he will resign from the Undergraduate Senate (UGS) effective Jan. 13. In his resignation letter, Msipa cited anxiety, the sedentary nature of UGS and his inability to balance UGS with all other commitments across Theater, Greek Life and being an RA as reasons for resignation.

In his time as a senator, Msipa spent much time working on undergraduate housing, particularly the pre-assignment and OAE housing progress which has seen a 200% increase in applications in the last few years in response to the “terrible, months-long anxieties caused by the housing draw”. 

Despite these accomplishments, Msipa said he encountered many challenges in representing and interacting with his Greek Life constituents, that including the Inter-Fraternity Council and Inter-Sorority Council which both endorsed him in the past election. These challenges in representation and engaging with his own community led to his eventual resignation. 

“I’ve hardly been able to see a single member of my fraternity. And that’s a challenge, you know, like there’s 15 senators, 8000 undergraduates […] and so it’s hard having people who represent every community,” Msipa said. “I don’t know. I felt like I wasn’t doing a really good job of representing any of them. And on top of that, I wasn’t spending time in those communities either, and that’s why I ran in the first place.” 

Msipa also cited the bureaucratic nature of trying to make change in the UGS as one of his reasons for resigning

“Honestly, those [general meetings] are just to touch base with each other. A lot of our work comes in the form of sending emails to this department, getting rerouted to a secretary to schedule a Zoom meeting in two weeks,” Msipa said. “There’s a lot of back and forth in email chains, and it feels really sedentary. That feeling of staying in the same place while fighting as hard as you can. It’s been demoralizing.” 

When asked if there are any things the UGS could’ve done to address the reason behind his resignation, Msipa said that the UGS is constrained by the constitutional framework itself. Despite the current UGS being one of the most productive cabinet in recent Stanford history, he said the senate still struggles with credibility and communication with both the student body and the Stanford administration. 

Msipa also briefly addressed the Green Library initiatives, acknowledging the hard work Gordon Allen ’26 and Ivy Chen ’26 have done behind the scenes. He said that they have been working nonstop from their last senate term and half of their current senate term working on it. 

He also urges students to get off of Fizz and support other students that are making things happen instead of complaining on Fizz. 

“The University does not check Fizz. Johnathan Levin does not check Fizz.”  Msipa said. “The students who get things done, and that’s everyone from undergrad RA is to student workers to unionize, are people who are able to put their phone down, go outside and talk to people and put out something they believe it, that’s something I’m going to continue to do, even while not being a senator. Fizz isn’t going to save Stanford.” 

UGS Co-Chairs Allen and Chen also responded to Msipa’s resignation by recognizing his hard work and accomplishments within the senate. 

“It takes stress and self awareness to be able to step back. […] It’s no small undertaking.” Allen said. “Being on the Senate is very demanding, it’s very taxing and oftentimes, I think a lot of the work that we do can’t be brought to the forefront. 

“We truly do hope that he continues his activism and advocacy, even beyond the Senate. We were talking about offering a proper send off to honor his service, his contributions, because his work does not go unnoticed,” Chen said.

Allen also said that this resignation does not represent anything ill about Msipa as an individual or the senate as a whole. 

In light of his resignation, Allen and Chen both said that changes will be made within UGS. 

In regard to the comments on anxiety and stress of being a UGS senator, both Chen and Allen agreed with Msipa’s claims and said that they are constantly pushing for work-life balance within the Senate by logging working hours and also facilitating more efficient communication. Both of them admitted to sacrificing sleep and extracurriculars to work on UGS initiatives. 

Msipa said he can pinpoint the exact moment he decided to run for a senate seat.

In a conversation with his friend, a lightning designer in Stanford SHAKES, Msipa realized the difficulty his friend had booking spaces and creating a safe culture for alcohol. Msipa said that was a “big issue” for him, and it drove him to want to “model these issues that would make Stanford a better place if they had institutional backing.” 

At the end of his resignation letter, Msipa attached the poem, “Birches,” by Robert Frost. He said that this poem reminded him of the feeling of childhood and the reason that led him to Stanford in the first place.

“I’d like to get away from earth for a while,” a line from the poem reads. “And then come back to it and begin over.”

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