Sometimes all it takes is a little break to figure things out.
That’s exactly what happened during the ASUO Student Senate meeting Wednesday night, as an issue that had been gathering heat was resolved shortly after a five-minute recess.
Senate turned down the ASUO Executive’s special request for $900, determining that the ASUO could obtain the necessary funds elsewhere.
When the ASUO requested the money from surplus for “Weaving New Beginnings,” an Oct. 24 reception for students and faculty of color, Senate President Peter Watts made a forceful point: The ASUO has more than $10,000 in its fund-raising account.
Why then, Watts asked, couldn’t the ASUO cover the expense?
ASUO International Student Advocate Daniel Valle, who brought the request to Senate, explained that response from student groups was not as great as he had expected, so the donations for the event were less than sufficient.
As he understood it, Senate was his last resort.
Jumping in, ASUO Vice President Holly Magner said she thought the fund-raising money, much of which the ASUO made during the Street Fair last week, was untouchable until January. Of the remaining $3,000, Magner said she believed the ASUO would use roughly $2,000 of it when sending students to a Northwest Leadership Conference later this year.
Watts, however, said that ASUO President Jay Breslow told him he would be coming to Senate for the conference money.
As Watts reiterated and several senators agreed, the purpose of the Senate is to be a last resort when groups have nowhere else to turn.
“The ASUO Exec … [has] thousands of dollars in fund raising,” Watts said. “Our mission really isn’t to give money to wealthy groups that don’t really need it.”
After a vote splitting the Senate in half — nine in favor and nine opposed — and Magner being forced to abstain because of her involvement with the ASUO, the Senate called a recess.
During the break, Magner contacted ASUO Accounting Coordinator Jennifer Creighton-Niewert to ask if the ASUO could provide the necessary funds for the event.
Returning to the meeting, Magner announced it could.
Aside from this debate, the Senate denied an ASUO Conflict Resolution Services request asking that a merit increase be issued to one of its employees.
CRS asked that 49 cents be added onto the hourly rate of a part-time office assistant, starting retroactively in September and moving on after that. A mandatory 2 percent pay increase happens every May.
As a split-funded group, CRS receives money from both the ASUO and from the Office of Student Life; the increase on OSL’s part had already been approved.
The request — arguing that the employee had taken on considerably more work since she returned this fall — was denied on the basis that the increase was an issue best left to the Programs Finance Committee during the budget process next January.
The only special request granted Wednesday night went to cover technical aspects of the University’s upcoming Homecoming Ball, “Twilight on the Delta,” which will take place Friday night in the EMU Ballroom.
Senate decided to give itself guidelines about how much surplus money it can spend each term throughout the year. Officially, it set aside $40,000 each for fall and winter terms, leaving $59,320 for spring.
“It’s more of a thing to keep us fiscally responsible … so that we don’t have a surplus shortage when it comes to next spring,” Senate. Greg Zimel said.
Senate swiftly solves ASUO funding conflict
Daily Emerald
October 18, 2000
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