Going Clubbing
Student Events and Organizations Committee Chair (SEOC) Maria Moreno, who was absent from last week’s meeting, forwarded a motion to approve the following seventeen Recognized Student Organizations and appropriate $300 to each club:
?Vietnamese Student Association ?Skiers and Snowboarders, Inc.?Caribbean Club?Academic Integrity Committee?Bhakti Yoga Club?The Economics Club?Hillel?Albanian Club?Japan Club?Wrec Center?Ethiopian Student Association?The Upside Down Club?Khmer Alliance Network?Pre-Med Society?The Marxist Study Action Group?Disabled Students Organization?Capeverdian Club
The motion passed, though Senator Andrew Barnes was less than enthused with the scarcity of club representatives.”I really have a problem with approving all the clubs if those people don’t have the time to be here when we’re approving,” he said. And though President Joseph Panciotti was quick to point out that attendance was not necessary in order to approve the clubs, Senator Barnes felt the issue was important enough to make a “friendly amendment” to vote upon each club individually in order to see which clubs were represented.
Director of Student Life Joyce Morgan came to the defense of the clubs, stating, “They’re not required to be here. It was never stated to the clubs that they should attend this meeting. It is unfair to judge them on their attendance because they were not told to be here. And I understand the rationale behind it, but unless you make that expectation, you cannot have that expectation.”
It wasn’t until Vice President Tuan Pham made a point of order that the issue was dropped. Pham stated that as Maria Moreno (the proponent of this motion) was not here, a friendly amendment would be out of order since she would not be able to accept the amendment.
Asked to clarify his position after the meeting, Barnes replied, “Because, I find that we fund these clubs and what happens is if they’re not going to show up for the initial initiation, then they in turn aren’t there for the meetings and filling out the proper paperwork and these will end up being the clubs that don’t fill out the proper procedures for getting measures pushed through.”
Though Barnes allowed that Director Morgan was correct in her statement, he indicated that he would be working with other senators to make attendance mandatory in the future.
Nevertheless, many senators, including Senator Fritz Hyppolite, are happy with the new clubs.
“I think it’s a great thing that people are starting new clubs. It lends to promoting better community on campus, people getting involved with what’s happening on campus, and it just provides more opportunities for students to meet each other and exchange information, personal stories, whatever it is.” Vice Chancellor Kerwin Requests Feedback On Draft Report
Annemarie Lewis Kerwin, vice chancellor of Communications & Community Relations, met with the Student Senate and requested feedback on a draft report for publicizing campus events and activities. The report is a result of the Internal Campus Communications (ICC) Committee, which was created in June with the purpose of increasing awareness and participation of various campus activities. The ICC Committee currently recommends a more organized method of advertisement which includes:
?Installation of electronic bulletin boards around campus.?Using the Office of Student Life as the disseminator of all print materials.?A calendar of events.
One suggestion made during the senate meeting included altering the school e-mail system to encourage more students to open an account. These changes are scheduled to occur before the end of the spring semester.
Appointments and Elections
The senate elected the following members: Bryan Smith (College of Management), Raming Medina (College of Management), Sophia Wong (College of Arts and Sciences), Benjamin Wang (College of Arts and Sciences), Sada Hauberg (College of Nursing), and Reuben Urmeneta (College of Arts and Sciences). Senator Kristina Lopez added that those who didn’t get in this time should try again later.
Senators Smith, Wong, Urmeneta, and Hauberg were then promptly appointed to SEOC, while Senators Medina and Wang were handed over to the Campus and Community Affairs Committee. In addition, Senator Solomon was appointed chair of the Ad Hoc Committee on Bylaws. Senator Maria Moreno and Trustee Heather Dawood were excused from last week’s meeting.
Higher Education Made Personal
Campus and Community Affairs Chair Fritz Hyppolite reports that last week a motion was approved to sponsor Higher Education Made Personal (HEMP) with fiscal support of up to $2,500. HEMP’s first letter writing campaign will go from April 7-11 and its subject will be “Funding State Education.”
Senator Barnes, the Faculty Council Representative of the Student Senate, will speak with Professional Union Representative Michael Meehan on the Faculty Council and discuss getting the administration and faculty involved with the letter writing campaign.Support HEMP and its goals by writing to your state legislator.
UMB Radio Station Vice President Pham reports that he is currently doing a feasibility study on the possibilities of having a radio station on campus. Currently, there are no commercial AM/FM frequencies available. Low-power FM frequencies are available, however, and there does not seem to be an application deadline.
In the future, the vice president intends to propose the formation of an ad hoc radio committee, composed of UMB and non-UMB members to research this topic.
Open House
Senate Network Administrator Skye Rhyddyd reminded senators that an Open House is being held March 10th in conjunction with the Graduate Student Assembly to inform students what the Student Senate is all about.
Robotics Competition
The competition took place Feb. 18, in Tennessee. The UMass Boston group consisted of one Computer Science major and two Engineering majors. Results of the competition will be given once the show has been aired, as per confidentiality agreements made between organizers of the contest and its participants.
Funding Requests By unanimous vote, $10,000 was further allocated for the Graduation Ball, doubling the money it already has. Normally, $20,000 is allocated annually for the Graduation Ball, but only half that amount was given last year.
The Computer Science Department requested $2,330 for a programming competition to be held in May. The money requested would be used to purchase a computer and software, which would be given back to the senate after the competition. The motion failed to pass.