The Associated Students of Fort Lewis College met to discuss a variety of topics on Wednesday, April 4. It discussed a formal document between ASFLC and the Environmental Center to continue the process of the EC becoming a Student Sponsored Organization.
The Registered Student Organization II and RSO III grant budget was decreased to allow for more in the contingency fund, a fund for unforeseen expenses.
ASFLC also discussed a censure to Chance Salway, ASFLC senator, and passed two travel grants.
This is a formal statement of disapproval for failing to meet with executives for 15 minutes semi-weekly.
Student Sponsored Organization MOU and Bylaws
ASFLC discussed a Memorandum of Understanding between ASFLC and the Environmental Center.
This MOU is a formal contract between ASFLC and the EC which outlines the roles and responsibilities of the EC as a Student Sponsored Organization and its relationship with ASFLC, Evan Wick, speaker of the senate, said.
An SSO is a fourth level of student organizations created last week by resolution 18-024.
Currently KDUR and the EC are the only two organizations in the process of becoming an SSO.
As an SSO, the EC gets a portion of the student fees revenue to pay the salaries of the paid staff members as well as for other expenditures.
SSO’s are run by paid staff members rather than students.
The formula for the budget for the EC is also in the MOU, Wick said.
The document takes the center’s status from an RSO III to an SSO, Wick said.
This MOU is for a duration of five years, he said.
As part of the Student Sponsored Organization approval process, ASFLC needs to approve the MOU.
ASFLC’s discussion centered around the MOU and the bylaws concerning student organizations at the SSO level, the level above an RSO III.
Amendments were proposed by Rachel Landis and Marty Pool, two full-time staff members of the Environmental Center, to clarify the MOU and align the MOU with Financial Allocation Board bylaws for SSO level organizations.
An amendment was made to the grievance process to state that senior representatives from ASFLC and the EC will be able to gather any information necessary to resolve an issue, Landis said.
The termination section was deleted since there is an amendment clause stating that the MOU can be amended once the amendment is approved by ASFLC by a unanimous vote and through an approval process of the EC to provide stability to the MOU, Wick said.
The purpose section was amended to state that the EC will continue to be a tool for student voices on campus, Landis said.
Reporting presentations can be proposed by either the EC or ASFLC.
The time frame, initially stating that reporting presentations should be done within two weeks, was changed to state that the presentation should be done in a timely manner, Pool said.
The formula for funding was also presented in the draft of the MOU, Wick said.
The MOU states that the EC will receive a $20,000 base allotment plus 15.5% of the total student activity fee revenue. This amount will increase and decrease along with enrollment because it is a percentage of the total revenue.
The model in the draft uses the student fee revenue from the 2017-18 school year and applies a 10 percent decrease, as a worst-case scenario, then reapplies the formula to reach the projected amount for the model, Dustin Fink, ASFLC president, said.
Grammatical amendments were made to the MOU.
The amendments proposed by Landis and Pool were accepted by ASFLC.
ASFLC passed this resolution.
RSO II and RSO III Budget
This resolution was a Financial Allocation Board recommendation. ASFLC must approve RSO II and III operating budgets, Wick said.
FAB decided on the percentage which would need to be cut from the RSO II and RSO III budget to match the revenue from student activity fees, he said.
The budget proposed at the meeting allowed for $15,000 in grants. Only about $11,000 has been used this year, Jacob Wolfe, FAB director, said.
In the case of having $15,000 in the grants budget, this would only allow for $431 in the contingency fund for next year, a fund set aside for unforeseen expenses, he said.
The contingency fund was $7,000 this year, Wolfe said.
The grant budget was changed from $15,00 to $8,000 to allow for more than $431 in the contingency fund, Wick said.
With enrollment expected to decrease for the 2018-19 school year, the budget is potentially reflective of that decrease, Wick said.
The Environmental Center will no longer appear as a line item in the ASFLC budget. The EC will instead receive 15.5 percent of the overall student activity fee income since it is under approval to become an SSO, Fink said.
This resolution was tabled until the next meeting.
Censure of a Senator
Senators Roy Adams, Annie David, Rebecca Judy and Wick sponsored a censure, a formal statement of disapproval, to Chance Salway, ASFLC senator, for a failure to meet with an ASFLC assigned executive semi-weekly for 15 minutes.
ASFLC senators have to meet with an assigned executive semi-weekly for 15 minutes to discuss projects and progress according to its constitution.
This resolution was sponsored by Allie Wolfe, ASFLC senator who acted as parliamentarian for the meeting, on the agenda. The resolution was presented by Annie David, ASFLC senator.
After the resolution was presented, Wolfe asked for her name to be removed as a co-sponsor. After meeting with Salway privately, Wolfe felt that he was able to state the projects he had been working on and was satisfied with his answer enough that she did not want to co-sponsor the resolution, she said.
Salway had previously failed to provide any account that his absence from the 15 minute meetings was related to a project for ASFLC, Annie David, ASFLC senator, said.
Salway presented the projects he has been working on.
One project concerns recycling on campus and the lack of recycle bins near any of the dumpsters located on campus, he said.
Salway plans to work on amendments to the constitution that will offer clarity and overall conciseness of the constitutional protocol for mandatory check ins with executives, he said.
The protocol was set by Dustin Fink, ASFLC president and Ian Fullinwider, ASFLC vice president, Salway said.
The reason for this censure was to hold Salway accountable for not abiding by the protocol for meeting with executives, Wolfe said.
After meeting with Salway privately prior to the ASFLC senate meeting, it was understood that Salway would take steps to fix the problem, Wolfe said.
Salway will work with Wolfe concerning the constitutional amendments to clarify the protocol for mandatory meetings, she said.
It was understood that Salway would bring a discussion to the table or a resolution to have the constitution interpreted or changed or to voice his concerns, Wick said. This has not happened, he said.
Salway has been active in projects and completed tasks for ASFLC, he said.
Concerns from other senators have not been brought up to executives about the protocol for semi-weekly meetings, Fink said.
Travel Grants
ASFLC passed two travel grants.
The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology requested a travel grant for $1,650 from ASFLC.
This travel grant was for club members to travel to San Diego for an annual meeting, Austin Butala, ASBMB vice president, said.
This meeting gives students an opportunity to network with graduate students and advisors from graduate schools, Butala said. It also helps build oral speaking skills as well as build their applications.
The grant total was divided amongst the members of ASBMB attending the meeting in terms of hotel accomodations some members needed as well as travel costs.
The American Institute of Graphic Arts RSO requested a travel grant for $740.
This travel grant was for members to attend the Colorado Spring Portfolio Review which is organized each year, George Bangs, AIGA president, said. Students have the opportunity to meet with art directors, designers and professionals who are working in this field.
Students receive feedback on the artwork they take to the meeting, he said.