Student Senate Minutes
October 21, 2007
I. General meeting of the Student Senate was called to order by Speaker Poindexter at 6:00 PM.
	A. Absent from the meeting were members:
	B. Also attending the meeting was:
II. Preliminary Items
	A. Roll Call
	B. Corrections/Approval of the minutes
	C. Gallery introductions/business – Sarah Seberger, Deana Dighero, Joshua 			Rauzi, Scott Schmidt, Nicole Hagstrom, Jake Henderson (Opposition to 			early registration for athletes).
	D. Guests of Honor
	E. Membership Issues
	F. Appointments/Administration of the Oath
	G. Changes/Approval of the agenda
III. Executive Reports
	A. Secretary – Committee chairs please continue to send attendance and minutes 			from your committee meetings. If you are a new member of senate and are 		still not getting senate wide emails, please send me an email so you can be 		added to the listserv. Email me if you are interested in getting a new 			nametag.
	B. Treasurer – None.
	C. President – Thanks the gallery for their attendance tonight. Every week we talk 		about issues as important as this. Please go back and tell your friends and 			other students that you had the chance to come and share your opinions. 			Meeting with President Dixon this week to discuss the bike co-op. Also 			discussing the financial aid situation. Will try to make her aware that this 			is something we’d like to address. Will also be discussing the progress 			with the collegiate readership program. Meeting with Dean Gilchrist about 		the Bike Co-op resolutions and her feelings about them. Candidates will 			be here Monday October 29th. There will be a candidate each week for two 		days. Working with Emily and the committee for student interaction with 			the candidates. Encourages everyone in the Senate to attend. Alumni 			reception this Saturday 12:30-1:30. Please attend! Greg Xander contacted 			about the Alumni Golf tournament. Need senators to help register and 			assist alumni. If you have anything you would like Matt to tell President 			Dixon or Dean Gilchrist, please email him.
IV. Auxiliary Reports
	A. Faculty Advisor
	B. Staff Advisor
	C. BOG –The Board of Governors meeting is Friday at 1:30 in the SUB 				Conference room. The agenda is available at http://governors.truman.edu 			but here are the highlights: The Bike-Co-op and space allocation 				resolutions were shared with the Board, so I'll let you know if I hear 			anything from the Board about that. The student affairs report for the 			meeting will focus on Residence Life, something the Board is really 			concerned with and you should be too considering the large amounts of 			money involved that students will pay back over many years. Approval of 			a design contract (not actual work just design) of turf for football field is 			coming before the Board. Once again I urge the fee committee to get 			organized and come out really strong because the student money produced 		by the athletics fee will be spent with or without the support/approval of 			students so if you want any say in the matter you need to get REALLY 			involved RIGHT NOW. Since it's Homecoming week I'll be doing a lot of 			schmoozing. Help me help you by letting me know what your 				organizations are doing. Also, if you are looking for a 					job/internship/whatever, LET ME KNOW and I'll try to help you out! 			Saturday after the parade (about 10:30) is the ribbon cutting ceremony for 			MO Hall. It should be a really neat ceremony! I challenge you to have 			more students than alumni there. I cannot stress to you how important it is 			that students be involved in the selection of the next Provost and Vice 			President for Academic Affairs. Start talking up the up-coming campus 			visits and be prepared to clear your schedules to attend the student 				sessions. If you and your friends, organizations, and constituents are 			involved in just one event that helps shape the University for the future 			this should be it. More details will come soon, but for now just really start 			to talk up the Provost position and educate fellow students about its 			importance. Please. 
	D. Speaker – Thanks for coming back for tonight’s meeting. You really are 			making a difference here on Senate. 
V. Committee Reports
	A. Academic Affairs – Realized she does not have to send a representative to each 		department meeting. Thinking about having a form on the website where 			organizations can send a rep to the department meetings. David is having 			another meeting with Professor Wiggle about WACT. Survey might occur 		early next semester. Book trade will go through. Looking at Reading Day 			from 1-5 in the Activities Room. Working out the logistics.
	B. External Affairs Chairwoman
	C. Student Affairs
		i. Campus Diversity
		ii. Campus Environment
	D. Technology
	E. Other Reports
		i. Historian
		ii. Communications Director
		iii. Webmaster
		iv. Athletics – Talking to ITS to set up a system where students can sign 			up for field times online. Also compiling lists of athlete safety issues. If 			you have any input please share it. There has already been a lot of varsity 			and student input.
		v. Recruitment
		vi. Legislative Director
		vii. Budget Review – We have finalized a set of guidelines how student 			initiatives will ask for funding. Philip had a meeting with USA Today to 			get more papers on campus. On track to finish all preparation for OAF 			early. Focus groups will be Oct. 29th, Nov. 5th, and Nov. 12th. 
VI. Old Business
VII. Money Motions
VIII. First Readings
	A. Esfeld – Resolution regarding early registration for student athletes
		- Wiley – Why are we supporting the current system and not opposing the 			early registration of athletes?
		- Esfeld – Thought it was addressed in the where as clauses and didn’t feel 		the need to include it. The therefore be it resolved clauses are the action 			we are taking. Our action is to support the current structure.
		- Kirtland – Strongly opposed to the therefore be it resolved clauses. Does 			not think that students as a whole support the system. It is very socially 			stratified. Not comfortable saying we support the current system. There is 			no impetus for us to investigate in the future.
		- Graber – Blake Peterson is on the wrestling team and has been pushing 			this. His opinion is that athletes are recruited by the school. Athletes in 			general have a higher GPA than other students. Understands the concerns 			that other organizations have he feels that athletics is unique in how it 			helps Truman. Any other organization can go through the same process if 			they feel qualified.
		- Seberger – Came tonight after reading the Index article and the minutes 			from last week. Feels like there is a large attack on athletes at this time. 			When visiting Truman she was struck by how nice the general population 			was. Is not the only one that feels personally attacked. There is a problem 			with the way we register but registering early is not the answer. Please 			recognize the act that student athletes are students first. Athletes are not 			asking for special treatment and are not receiving any.
		- Wisa – It is important that your voice is heard. Thank you for sharing 			your opinion. We listen and take in everyones opinions. Likes the current 			wording because it does not state that we are picking the athletes above 			other groups and we are not criticizing or denouncing the athletes. Would 			like to include that we support professors to be more flexible in giving 			overrides to athletes with scheduling conflicts.
		- Seberger – Feels like this has not been researched. Appreciate it being 			students in general and not just athletes in the wording.
		- Wiley – Amendment to line 27 : The Student Government of Truman 			State University for the 2007-2008 academic year does not support 			changing the current registration to allow student athletes to register early.
			- Mozaffar – Would prefer the amendment to state that we do not 				support the early registration of any group.
			- Kirtland – Amendment to the amendment: The Student 					Government of Truman State University for the 2007-2008 					academic year are opposed to any individual group of students 				being allowed to register prior to other students within the context 				of the current system. Further, the student government should 				actively investigate the possibility of an improved system.
				- Accepted as friendly.
			- The original resolution stating that we support the current system 				suggests that there is a system. Even though there is not.
			- Esfeld – The registrar is uneasy when asked about the system. 				Because there isn’t one. It is based on precedence.
			- Risch – Might not want to touch on the entire system in this 				resolution.
			- Kirtland – This gives us something to be proactive with.
			- Wisa – Unsure if he supports the amendment in general. We have 				done our own research. Students in general do not support 					the policy of athletes registering early. Uncomfortable 					putting something in the resolution about being opposed 					with the current system without researching.
			- Szewczyk – Getting two issues confused.
			- Mozaffar – Friendly amendment to remove bullet two.
			- Wisa – In light of the discussion, more apt to support the 					amendment. Feels bad for picking out one specific group but does 				not know how to change it.
			- Would it be possible to amend that the status quo is fine and no 				changes need to be made?
			- Mozaffar – We have moved away from that because there may be 			other issues with registration outside of the athlete issue. This way 				we can address other issues at a later time.
			- Amendment accepted.
		- Schutter – Line 16 it says no group of students other than by credit hour. 				Grammar is a little off. Put by credit hour clause at the end. 
		- Kirtland – Ask students and professors this week about this resolution. 				Most professors are lenient. If this goes through will they be less 				likely to give out overrides.
		- Aren’t overrides given at professor discretion? How does Senate have a 				say?
		- Seberger – Has anyone on Senate talked to Jerry Wolmering?
		- Kirtland – This idea has always been passed around and never pursued. 				Jerry is supportive of athletes but is not ready to have this 					discussion at this time.
IX. Discussion Items
X. Other New Business
XI. Announcements

Adjourned at 
Respectfully submitted by Secretary Piel on October 22, 2007