Senate approves one group for early discretionary money

June 3, 2010, 1:02 a.m.

In its last meeting before the summer recess, the ASSU Undergraduate Senate confirmed on Tuesday the 2010-2011 ASSU executive cabinet and a slight modification to the next academic year’s executive budget.

While the Senate confirmed the members of the ASSU executive cabinet last week, this week’s bill included the cabinet members’ salaries for next year, in accordance with a disclosure bill passed earlier this year. Executive Chief of Staff John Haskell ’12 will earn $2,500, while each chair will earn $800 for the year.

In addition to the chairs confirmed last week, Sam Purtill ’13 was added to serve as operations manager. Purtill will oversee banking, schedule meetings and plan events for the cabinet and the ASSU executives, Angelina Cardona ’11 and Kelsei Wharton ’12.

Purtill will also work with Stanford Student Enterprises (SSE) to secure project reimbursements and with the chair of technology, Taylor Savage ’13, on projects such as LiveScreen.

“It’s important that we can delegate,” Wharton said, describing Purtill’s role.

Appropriations

The Senate passed all funding bills on Tuesday, approving early discretionary funds for Leland Quarterly and special fees budget modifications for the Muslim Student Awareness Network and the Stanford Concert Network.

Following the Tuesday evening meeting, the Senate Appropriations Committee, chaired by Rafael Vasquez ’12, held a town hall in Old Union for leaders of volunteer student organizations. The committee will hold another town hall at the beginning of fall quarter.

On the Senate e-mail list, former senator and Appropriations Chair Anton Zietsman ’12 blasted the committee’s efforts — insufficient efforts, Vasquez admitted — to publicize the period last week when student groups could seek early discretionary funding.

“A lot of financial officers are still waiting on early discretionary funding,” Zietsman wrote. “It’s your job now to explain to them why they won’t be able to receive it and how that is going to affect their programming during NSO and early fall quarter.”

Senate Chair Michael Cruz ’12 said financial officers had been notified of the funding period in an e-mail.

Another former senator, Mohammad Ali ’10, fired back at Zietsman, blaming the short funding period on the late transition from the 11th to the 12th Senate last month.

“I warned you guys that this would happen,” Ali wrote.

Other Business

The Senate also modified the 2010-2011 executive budget, moving $1,000 budgeted for summer stipends to general discretionary funds, as Wharton will only be on campus for part of the summer.

During the executive update, Cardona and Wharton mentioned two upcoming events. “Rejuvenation Day,” a festival planned by health and wellness chair Taylor Winfield ’13 and set for today, will offer events such as yoga in White Plaza, guided meditation in the Wellness Room in Old Union and a comedy night with the Stanford Improvisers at the CoHo.

“Ditch that Dumpster,” a collaboration of SSE and Students for a Sustainable Stanford, will take place on June 9, 10 and 14. Students will be able to discard unwanted items at dorm stations to be sold for reuse in the fall.

Tuesday’s meeting marked the first since the Senate named its committee members. Over the past week, each committee met to choose leadership and discuss goals for the year.

The communications committee, chaired by Will Seaton ’13 (also a Daily writer), discussed the creation of a technology subcommittee, an idea brought forth by Senator Stewart Macgregor-Dennis ’13. The proposed subcommittee would have a separate mission from the committee as a whole, focusing purely on the computer science-related responsibilities of the communications committee, such as maintaining the Senate website. The technology subcommittee would replace the precedent of hiring a webmaster to maintain the site.

The student life, housing and education committee, chaired by Deepa Kannappan ’13, discussed the existence and membership of the sustainability subcommittee. When Kannappan suggested the subcommittee be open to all senators, Cruz suggested the formation of a working group, a less formal body limited to participation by seven senators to discuss sustainability-related issues.

The Senate tabled a resolution on Tuesday to foster a queer studies program through the feminist studies program. Senators expressed hope that other measures, such as increased student surveys to demonstrate interest, would help the movement before they reevaluate the resolution in the fall.

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