The Student Senate tallied its third resignation of the year Sunday after treasurer and ASUO Athletic Department Finance Committee member Spencer Crum stepped down in order to pursue journalism and write for the Emerald as a freelance sports reporter.
“Sports is just so much more to me than politics and I think that being a journalist is so much more to me than being a politician,” Crum said.
Crum called the situation a “super-dilemma,” because Emerald policy prohibits printing news articles by students who are simultaneously involved in student government.
Crum said he regrets not continuing with the Senate because he wanted to challenge the doubts
expressed by other Senators during officer elections earlier this term. Some controversy accompanied Crum’s election after he failed to
attend the majority of summer Senate meetings, which provides grounds for termination.
“When elected treasurer, I felt an extreme need to prove people wrong because it infuriated me that people doubted me,” he said. “I understand that I missed Senate meetings during the summer, but I wanted to be here,” Crum said. Crum worked as a swim coach in Portland during the summer.
Senator Rob Craig, law and graduate student representative, resigned Sept. 28 because of a time conflict. Senator Khanh Le, a PFC representative, stepped down effective Oct. 12 because of time commitment issues.
The Student Senate will also be filing a grievance to the ASUO Constitution Court asking that Senator Rahmat Rahmat be removed because he has not attended any of the five meetings this term.
Senate President Stephanie Erickson advised Crum to make the decision quickly as to not impede the upcoming Programs Finance Committee budget season, during which the treasurer acts as chairman to help allocate incidental fees to student programs.