Claire Sharman followed all of the Senate’s rules. She turned in her request for money from the Senate’s surplus in advance to send members of Students for Choice to an event in Los Angeles. She answered all the questions, she did as much fundraising as she could, she cut corners to ask for the lowest possible dollar amount.
But on Sunday the Feminist Majority Foundation’s 20th anniversary celebration will take place and Sharman has not received any funds from the Senate, nor has her request been debated. The Senate hasn’t met for two weeks, and by the time it does Sharman’s event will have passed.
“Everybody that I’ve talked to has been very professional with me. I just don’t think it’s acceptable to cancel two meetings in a row when there are items on the agenda,” Sharman said.
Senate President Athan Papailiou said meetings had not been canceled, but rather were never scheduled. The Senate did not meet two weeks ago Wednesday because it was the night before Thanksgiving and the EMU closed at 5 p.m., two hours before the Senate’s regular meeting time.
The Senate’s rules specify that the body does not need to meet during Dead Week, which is why there was no meeting this Wednesday.
But Senate Vice President Donnie Kim said that was no excuse. A meeting could have been held at an earlier time the day before Thanksgiving, Kim said. Or rules could have been changed to specify that no meeting would occur before Thanksgiving, but would take place during dead week instead, which always follows the holiday, he said.
Sharman said she found out about the event in Los Angeles too late to submit a request for surplus funds for the Senate’s Nov. 14 meeting. Instead, she asked for a hearing on Nov. 21.
ASUO controllers weren’t sure at the time if a meeting would happen that day, since it was Thanksgiving eve. It seems the general feeling in the Senate was that there wouldn’t be enough senators to meet quorum.
When it was determined there would be no meeting, Sharman said she felt she had enough time to wait to book her flights and decided to see if Senate would grant her $500 request on Nov. 28. But, being Dead Week, there was no meeting then either.
“I let everyone know this was happening and the senate officers were in agreement,” Papailiou said. He sent an e-mail to all programs letting them know there wouldn’t be meetings, he said.
Students for Choice was not the only group that requested a hearing this week. The UO American Marketing Association had a request for more than $3,000 for a conference in New Orleans next April.
“It was just a slight inconvenience because I planned to be at the meeting,” UO AMA President Joey Mucha said. Last year, the group waited too long and had to spend big money to send one person to the conference, Mucha said. This year he is asking more than a term in advance so he can send more people for less money.
Sharman said she will attend the conference by herself if she does not raise enough money for another student to accompany her. Students for Choice doesn’t have enough money to risk paying for two students and not being reimbursed by the Senate, she said. Her airplane ticket cost $100 more than it would have if she had booked it two weeks ago, she said.
Sen. Neil Brown said he is trying to measure the support among other members to estimate for Sharman the likelihood of the request passing the Senate.
“I’m calling around trying to see where the vote tally is,” Brown said. “I want to try to make sure they go (to Los Angeles).” Kim said he believed “Senate dropped the ball” by not finding a way to meet during the past two weeks.
Sharman said the situation has been frustrating, but she thinks the Senate works hard.
“I think Senate affects student lives and what student groups get to do more than Senate realizes sometimes,” she said.
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