The University Assembly will meet with full legislative authority for the first time since 1995 this Friday at 3 p.m. in the three-court basketball area of the Student Recreation Center. The assembly is meeting to discuss and potentially vote on a proposed resolution condemning a war in Iraq.
According to secretary of the faculty Gwen Steigelman, a quorum of more than half the assembly’s approximately 2,000-member body must be present at Friday’s meeting in order for a vote to occur.
Professor Emeritus Frank Stahl said he is expecting attendance to be far greater than the assembly’s open discussion, held Jan. 31 and attended by about 200 people, some of whom were not voting assembly members.
“People are done discussing the resolution,” Stahl said. “They have made up their minds and are ready to vote.”
When the assembly met in 1995, they voted to instate the University Senate as the governing body of the University. The decision was made
after several assembly meetings drew scant attendance, University archivist Heather Brinston said.
“They were afraid that they would violate public meeting laws if they kept governing authority with the assembly,” Brinston said.
According to Brinston, the 1995 meeting was attended by less than one-third of assembly members.
Prior to the 1995 meeting, the assembly had met with full authority once in the previous 30 years, Brinston said.
On May 6, 1970, just two days after the Kent State massacre, the assembly gathered to discuss a resolution opposing the war in Vietnam. Because of the huge number of people wanting to attend and speak at the meeting, the congregation met at McArthur Court. After several speeches and discussion, the faculty senate passed a resolution against the war.
University President Dave Frohnmayer has said repeatedly he does not believe passing resolutions is part of University business. He called Friday’s meeting only after a petition circulated by Concerned Faculty for Peace and Justice was signed by more than 508 members of the University voting faculty.
The success of the petition has given students and assembly members hope that the resolution will pass regardless of the administration’s position.
“This shows a really important separation between the faculty and the administration,” Students for Peace member Philippa Anderson said. “The administration is not representative of the University.”