The third meeting of the Student Senate for 2003-04 was convened in 25 Mondale Hall, Minneapolis campus, on Thursday, December 4, 2003, at 2:12 p.m. Coordinate campuses were linked by telephone. Checking or signing the roll as present were 32 voting student members. Chair Dan Weiske presided.

A senator made a motion to suspend the rules to provide for one minute speeches at today’s meeting. The motion was seconded, a vote was taken, and the motion was not approved with only 14 in favor, nine opposed, and seven abstentions.

MOTION:

To approve the Student Senate minutes, which are available on the Web at the following URL. A simple majority is required for approval.

http://www1.umn.edu/usenate/ssen/031030stu.html

DISCUSSION:

This item was tabled since the minutes were not available on the web prior to the meeting.

Dan Weiske, Student Senate Chair, said that since the October meeting, CLA, CSOM, and IT have each filled their vacant seats, and these new senators are at today’s meeting. The Student Committee on Committees also worked hard to fill all committee vacancies this year after it received almost 500 applications for service. He said that today’s meeting was intended as a chance to bring issues to the table and discuss issues from the Student Senate Consultative Committee (SSCC) that will come back throughout the year.

Scott LeBlanc, Student Senate Consultative Committee (SSCC) Chair, said that the committee had fun on a recent trip to Morris to see the campus, attend a student association meeting, and meet with their executive committee members. At upcoming meetings, the committee will be talking with Vice Provost Craig Swan regarding tuition and President Bruininks regarding administrative actions during the summer. If senators have any agenda items for future meetings, please talk to your SSCC representatives.

Crookston – No report.

Duluth – Charles Stech said that that UMDSA is fighting a proposed city council ordinance.

Morris – Sara Kloek stated that MCSA is working on a book exchange, community relations, and the bonding bill.

Graduate and Professional Student Association – Jeremy Steil stated that GAPSA approved a resolution on the proposed stadium suggesting that all other funding options be exhausted before students are asked to contribute. A resolution was also approved opposing Lehman Brothers, which is a firm that does bonding requests for the University. GAPSA is working on problems with the Student Activities Office and representation from Duluth.

Minnesota Student Association – Eric Dyer said that MSA is looking for funding for a late-night bus after the pilot had over 5000 riders. MSA is also running a Collegiate Readership Program trial to assess student interest. Housing issues are being addressed through Project Lighthouse proposals. MSA has been watching federal tuition legislation, HR3311. The stadium feasibility study will be public on Monday.

Dan Weiske said that a recent Student Senate Consultative Committee (SSCC) meeting, the process for Senate business and the role of senators was discussed, and members thought that a similar discussion should take place at the Student Senate.

He stated that all senators are encouraged to submit business for the Student Senate to discuss. The process is that issues go to SSCC, two weeks prior to a Senate meeting, for placement on the agenda. It does not need to be a resolution, but can simply be a topic of concern. Under new business, action items are routinely sent back to committee for action first.

The role of the Student Senate is a place where all students, from all campuses and all levels, can address common issues and concerns, as well as persuade University administration what is in the students' best interest and act on students' behalf. The University Senate and its committees also allows students to be at the table with faculty and administration during consultation and formation of policies. The heart of the Senate work does take place in committees, which is why SSCC discussed ways to communicate better with its committees.

Scott LeBlanc, SSCC Chair, asked senators what issues should be worked on and what concerns need to be addressed this year.

A senator said that time this year has been devoted to the Senate reorganization and that not many other items have been brought to the Student Senate. When new to the Student Senate, it is hard to know how things work and how issues get addressed. This agenda contains many items, but all generated by SSCC. He would like to see more ideas from the Student Senate as a whole. It seems like their has been more bickering than usual between campuses, and this approach is unfortunate since it wastes a good opportunity to discuss common concerns. The Student Senate’s strength does not lie in the number of votes, but in its ability to advocate for all students.

Another senator said that conflicts do exist between campuses because of argumentative comments that are made by some people without thinking through the consequences.

Scott LeBlanc, SSCC Chair, said that destructive comments are unfortunate, but they only reflect the opinion of one person, not the entire organization. Senators need to remember that they are all students with the same goal of trying to get the best education possible.

A senator then said that the Twin Cities recently had a month of kindness during November, and this might be something that the other campuses would like to participate in next year.

Another senator said that Crookston has a week of kindness each February.

A senator stated that the Council of Graduate Students (COGS) will be voting tonight to implement a resolution process. It is passes, it will be a mechanism to bring other issues to the Student Senate for discussion. She also said that stadium financing and student fees are big issues, which should be discussed by the Student Senate next semester.

Scott LeBlanc, student member of the Teaching Evaluation Subcommittee, stated that this subcommittee was formed with members from the Educational Policy Committee (SCEP) and the Faculty Affairs Committee (SCFA) to look at teaching evaluations. The subcommittee consists of one undergraduate student, one graduate student, and six faculty members. The group will be discussing the evaluation questions, access, and student release sections. A report will be issued by May. He asked for student feedback on the issue including on-line access and questions to be asked.

Q: Is the subcommittee looking at including student evaluations in the Duluth faculty union contracts?

A: He is not sure how contract issues work, but recommendations will be forwarded.

A senator said that currently there is no contract for Duluth faculty, so now would be the time to act on any changes.

Charles Stech, Alcohol Task Force Chair, said that membership will include up to three members from each campus. He has received names from all campuses but Morris. The charge is to discuss the different alcohol policies now in place and determine if a standard policy, to be applied to all campuses, would be possible.

Q: What alcohol issues will be discussed?

A: The committee charge will discuss all options regarding alcohol, including bans and limits.

A senator noted that he is opposed to an alcohol-free campus, however mandates regarding checking ID’s and food with alcohol service should be considered.

Another senator said that the task force should examine why alcohol is not served in the unions or at football stadiums. Senators should also ask other students for their opinions and bring these thoughts back to the task force.

A senator stated that issues such as serving on campus, dry and wet campuses, alcohol possession, serving, and parental notification should all be discussed.

Q: Which campuses are wet or dry?

A: Crookston and Duluth are dry campuses, Morris and Twin Cities are dry unless a student is 21 years of age.

Scott LeBlanc said that MSA and MCSA are both working on the issue of textbook prices. He recently had a discussion with Bob Crabb, Director of the Twin Cities Bookstore, regarding limiting increases through purchasing overseas, message boards, student book trades and sales, and fluff. There are problems associated with each option. When ordering overseas, books cost half the price, but the bookstore still pays for crating and freight charges, but with no insurance that the merchandise will arrive on time. As for student-run options, they do not seem to be effective.

The only price fighter left is fluff, which is defined as all the extra things that come along with the textbook, such as study guides and CDs. The company asks the professor to require these extras and then ships the textbooks as a package. The professor will usually agree, which means that the increased cost is passed along to the students who pay for things that they do not always need.

A representative from MCSA said that they started a book exchange web site and are working on a partnership with the library so students can donate their books for future use. In the long term, the academic affairs committee will be looking at ways to convince faculty to consider book choices.

It was noted that Duluth has a paper-based textbook exchange.

A senator said that the Student Senate needs to be aware that faculty rely on book publishing to receive tenure, so it is important to discuss this topic with faculty early.

Another senator then said that a fraternity at Crookston runs a book exchange for campus. Many students use on-line sources for book ordering.

A senator then stated that there is a book exchange on the Twin Cities, which is the Student Book Store (SBS). It is a private book store that serves as an agent for buying and selling books for students. Another component of the total cost is the number of books required per class. A policy limiting the number of books per class or credit should be considered, with a procedure for granting exemptions.

Another senator said that one idea would be to establish a standing body to field complaints from students about expensive book sets and to talk to the faculty about alternatives. This would be a less restrictive option than the previous option. A second idea is to encourage faculty to place, in the on-line reserves, books that require small parts to be read for class.

Dan Weiske said that SSCC wanted this topic on the agenda to find out what student lobbying efforts are taking place and to find out what each student can do to help.

Eric Dyer, Chair of the Student Legislative Coalition(SLC), said that February 18 has been designated as the University’s Lobby Day. He said that SLC is no longer a separate entity, but is simply a coordinating board, with members from each campus, to share information and gain a consensus from across the campuses. If students have any suggestions from lobby day, please forward them to your SLC representatives as planning for this event is starting.

A senator from Crookston said that their main issue involves HEAPR funds for a heating plant.

Danielle Stuard, the Morris SLC representative, said that the Morris capital request includes funding for a joint-use football stadium and biomass facility. There are many events scheduled, such as writing nights, call days, and meetings with legislators.

A senator from Duluth noted that there many lobby action will be funds for a recreational sports center expansion.

Q: Should the Student Senate be more involved in the lobbying effort, such as by taking back SLC as a subcommittee?

A: SLC is working fine now and allows each campus to control their own lobbying efforts. If the Student Senate wants to get involved, then it should be through involvement from the senators themselves, not the organization.

A senator then stated that the representatives need to work on University-wide lobbying efforts and not just campus specific requests. The different University campuses should not vie against each other for funding, but support the entire request.

Eric Dyer said that this issue has been addressed numerous times at SLC meetings, and the stance taken has been to support each campus with their requests. He stated that the current structure seems to be working and he would like more time to see how it works before changes are made.

Q: What other items, besides the bonding bill, is SLC working on?

A: SLC is also looking at tuition and budget cut effects on student services, and monitoring federal legislation.

Q: How can students lobby for the University’s request?

A: A lobbying sheet will be available in the lobby day packets which are still being made. Guidance will also be provided on lobby day.

With time for discussion elapsed, a motion to extend discussion for another three minutes was made, seconded, and approved.

A senator then noted that a united front for lobbying will be a better approach for lobbying.

Another senator stated that the Student Senate should have a working relationship with SLC.

A senator then said that the Student Senate had a seat on SLC, but it was removed two years ago because it was a non-voting position and the Student Senate did not contribute any funds. There is also the possibility of an ex officio position on SLC, but that should not be necessary because SLC supports the entire request, not campus-specific items.

Dan Weiske said that the entire working group will not meet until January, although the Twin Cities and coordinate campus faculty and student members will meet on January 21. Any actions taken will be brought to the University Senate next semester.

Derek Brunsberg, SSCC member from Morris, asked that this item be discussed by the Student Senate to get clarification of how the organization feels on the changes that are being proposed.

A senator said that he does not support the decrease in Student Senate seats and suggested that another approach be found to add CAPA and Civil Service seats.

Another senator asked whether a section could be added to the constitution allowing for the Student Senate to veto action.

A senator then questioned whether it is in the students’ best interest to complain about total seat numbers. Compromise might be the best approach in this instance, especially since faculty are losing over 50 seats and students are just losing nine. Students should not harm what else they can get from this process by refusing to budge on seat numbers.

Another senator stated that Senate relations could be harmed this year by just focusing on seat numbers. 50 student senators can still be good advocates for students and work effectively at the University Senate. If complaints continue, faculty will feel that they are the enemy in this process.

Q: Why are seats being eliminated in one college when seats in other colleges are allocated but not filled?

A: This process reflects the dynamic nature of student government and the involvement level of students. Seats should be based on a constant variable, such as population, not one that changes with student apathy.

A senator then stated that all students have a right to be represented in the Senate. He then wondered whether faculty will be happy with losing over 50 seats. He is not treating any other group as the enemy, but simply advocating for maintaining student representation. Numbers do matter when the final vote is taken.

Q: Are CAPA or Civil Service members unionized?

A: CAPA members are not, and unionized civil service members would not be involved in this process due to union contract stipulations.

Q: With regards to communication between SSCC and committees, how will this take place?

A: SSCC discussed establishing student liaisons on each committee who would report in writing to SSCC. Discussion topics could then be added to the Student Senate agenda after reviewing these reports.

Q: When the University Senate meeting was cancelled, what did it mean that there were no agenda items? Who made the decision to cancel the meeting? When was the decision made? What is the responsibility of students to bring issues to the Student Senate? Can only senators submit items?

A: No committee or person had submitted items of business to the clerk, which is what is required for placement on the agenda. The Chair of the Senate Consultative Committee then decided to cancel the meeting the day before docket deadline. Only senators can submit items for the agenda.

A senator noted that approval of minutes, old business, and new business should be enough business to hold a meeting.

Dan Weiske said that to consider an item under new business, the rules need to be suspended by a two-thirds vote of the Senate. If two-thirds note is not received, then the item is automatically referred to the Senate Consultative Committee.

A senator then thanked SSCC for Student Senate agenda items that affect more than one campus.

The meeting was adjourned at 3:39 p.m.