The student government leaders who recently traveled to a Washington, D.C., conference signed contracts before their departure promising they wouldn’t use the behavior of their political opponents as ammunition in the upcoming ASUO elections.
The ASUO officials who came up with the contracts, ASUO Vice President Chii-San SunOwen and Student Senate Vice President Patrick Boye, said the idea was to create a more relaxed environment where the 14 students – several of whom are running for ASUO positions – could focus on learning, and not on upcoming campaigns.
But one student who attended the March 15 – 18 USSA Legislative Conference said the contracts were more of a green light for students to get drunk and not worry about the political consequences.
“Basically if someone gets completely trashed and there are photos you can’t bring it up,” the source said, who spoke only on the condition of anonymity in fear of political retribution.

But other students who went on the conference said they thought the contracts were a smart tool to make the group more cohesive and focused on what they were there for, which was to learn how to lobby.
“It wasn’t like we wouldn’t have got along if we didn’t sign it,” said University student Carina Miller, who attended the conference. “But it helped us focus on what the conference was about.”
SunOwen said the point of the contracts wasn’t to hide bad behavior by those in the ASUO.
“It was definitely with the intent of calming, and making sure students felt respected and comfortable attending,” she said.
If students who were of age decided to drink that was fine because it’s their personal time, she said, and it “wouldn’t necessarily be brought back as a campaign tool.”
She thought it worked well. “It set a really good tone for the conference and helped students relax a little bit.”
The ASUO Executive financed the four-day conference using $11,934 of student fees, according to the executive’s budget. Hundreds of other college students from across the nation also attended the conference, which was held at the four-star L’Enfant Plaza Hotel.
A manager at the hotel told the Emerald she was unaware of any violations or complaints against the University of Oregon students who attended, but the mass of students at the hotel that weekend for the conference did become unruly at times and required increased security.
The conference attendees contacted by the Emerald all said the University of Oregon students who went behaved appropriately.
SunOwen said the “good-faith” contracts, which were not legally binding, also asked people to attend all the conference meetings – which began at 9 a.m. each day – thus discouraging drinking.
“I think it created more accountability,” she said.
SunOwen and Boye said they were unaware of any underage drinking going on at the conference.
Sun-Owen said the student-fee funded student government trip to SunRiver in 2004 where student leaders abused alcohol and marijuana and damaged rental properties wasn’t a reason for the contract, although it is an issue when considering conferences financed by student fees.
“I think that is on every student group’s mind when they put on conferences,” she said. “If there is drinking going on it should be by of-age students and should be conducted under personal time, not with any student fees.”
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