The
University
of
Michigan Central Student
Government
convened
in
the
Michigan
Union
Tuesday night to discuss
allocations of Legislative
Discretionary funding, to
confirm new roles and to
amend the election code.
The
Assembly
began
with
deliberations
on
allocating a fund of $5,645
for
performing
Macbeth
in the Union courtyard.
Music, Theatre & Dance
representative
Zion
Jackson advocated for the
resolution.
“The reason we are doing
this is because we feel that
theatre is an integral part
of the American lifestyle,
and I feel that theatre
has power in connecting
people,” Jackson said. “This
Shakespeare play does a lot
of that. It has a lot of themes
(that) are very political, not
in a bad sense, but it shines
a light on different topics of
today.”
LSA
representative
Maddi Walsh, on the other
hand, was concerned about
the cost required for this
production.
“We
don’t
have
any
way
of
really
knowing
concretely what the value
that we are getting out of
(the production) is,” Walsh
said. “We don’t really know
aside from just projections
from past productions what
our return on investments
is going to be and whether
it is going to be similar or
not.”
In response to Walsh’s
concerns,
Jackson
recognized the production
is a risk financially, but
also creates an opportunity
for CSG to build a stronger
relationship
with
the
School of Music, Theatre &
Dance.
“I know it’s a risk. It’s
very risky and that we
don’t
know
the
actual
return on investment and
such, but I also feel like
with something like this
we won’t know unless we
try,” Jackson said. “There
haven’t been any efforts, at
least to my knowledge, any
concrete or solid efforts
for us to try to establish a
better relationship with the
School of Music, Theatre &
Dance, and so I feel like this
is a method to do that.”
After
a
vote,
the
resolution
was
referred
to
the
Resolutions
and
Finances Committee due
to concerns regarding the
large fund needed.
The
Assembly
then
confirmed LSA sophomore
Brendan Neary as vice-chair
of the Student Organization
Funding Committee. Last
semester, LSA junior and
SOFC vice-chair Max Jones
was recalled for application
misconduct.
LSA
freshman
Kyla
McCallum
was
also
confirmed as chief of staff.
McCallum
will
succeed
Public
Policy
junior
Amanda
Kaplan,
who
announced her candidacy
for CSG President with the
Mobilize
party
Monday
night.
The Assembly approved
a resolution to create a
Student
Organization
Committee
to
improve
CSG’s
relationship
with
student
organizations
and relieve the workload
on
SOFC,
which
is
currently responsible for
enforcing CSG regulations
and
managing
student
organization funding.
The committee will be
led by a director who will
manage
communication
with student organizations,
funding and enforcement of
rules. SOC will also manage
other student organization
operations
that
are
not
related
to
funding
but
impact student life.
The
Assembly
also
reached
a
decision
to
remove the BIT Liaison,
who
oversees
SOFC’s
Bystander
Intervention
Training
Liaison,
and
redirect the responsibilities
of the liaison to the Sexual
Misconduct Prevention and
Survivor
Empowerment
Commission. It was also
decided that the Bystander
Intervention Training will
be converted to an online
course.
The Assembly discussed
proposed
amendments
to
the
election code. Engineering
representatives
Zeke
Majeske and Carla Voigt
and
LSA
representative
Sam
Braden
advocated
for
banning
political
parties. The group said
that currently, parties seek
out
popular
candidates
who have the ability to get
numbers.
Additionally, the group
said there is a lack of
information on ways to
participate
in
CSG
due
to the fact that students
usually learn about CSG
only
during
election
season. They said the party
system further discourages
individual candidates from
contesting
party
picks
for
seats
and
prevents
candidates from winning
because
of
their
party
affiliation.
They also pointed out
the
financial
burden
on
candidates
who
run
without a party, saying they
are delegated significantly
lower
funds
when
campaigning.
CSG
Speaker
Whit
Froehlich
ruled
this
amendment out of order
on the grounds that it was
unconstitutional. However,
the group said even if their
proposal does not argue the
unconstitutionality of the
current system, it is still
unfair.
The
Assembly
then
engaged
in
a
debate
regarding the revocation of
Froehlich’s ruling. Majeske
withdrew the resolution.
The
same
group
proposed another set of
amendments
that
would
allow students to campaign
with other candidates, but
would prevent them from
campaigning under a single
party name and putting a
party name on the ballot.
Froehlich ruled this set of
proposed amendments out
of order.
The
Assembly
then
debated the group’s third
set of amendments. The
Assembly voted to pass
the sets of amendments,
which bans party names
on the ballot and prevents
candidates from spending
money on other candidates.
CSG Vice Speaker Selena
Bazzi advocated for the
amendments,
saying
she
felt that candidates running
with parties have an unfair
advantage over individual
candidates.
“When I first ran for CSG
with MomentUM against
MVision, I felt like I was
chasing after everyone to
vote for me, and even then I
barely made it,” Bazzi said.
“When I ran with Engage,
I barely had to campaign,
and I was on top. I feel like
parties matter a lot.”
Reporter
Navya
Gupta
can be reached at itznavya@
umich.edu.
FE ATU RE
2A — Wednesday, February 19, 2020
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
News
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By Design
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NAVYA GUPTA
Daily Staff Reporter
Three representatives present amendments to adjust role of parties in student government elections
Central Student Government discusses
election parties, performance funding
Feb. 19, 1975: ‘U’ to destroy some student files
The literary college (LSA) plans
to destroy portions of student
counseling
records,
according
to
Charles
Morris,
associate
dean of LSA. The material to be
removed consists of letters of
recommendation written mainly
by high school counselors, which
have been forwarded from the
admissions office to the LSA
counseling office.
Morris
reported
that
Vice
President for Academic Affairs
Frank Rhodes told him last week
that the letters of recommendation
could not be made available to
students.
HOWEVER, because the LSA
Administrative Board, which has
final decision-making authority
over LSA counseling offices, had
earlier declared that all material
in students’ files should be made
available to the students, Morris
said there is no option now
available to the board except
removal of the files in question.
Morris stated that “the feeling
of the board is that if the material
is not accessible to the student,
it should not be accessible to
anyone.” He stressed that the
decision to destroy the material
was something that they had been
forced to do, not something of
which he personally approved.
Nevertheless,
Rhodes
had
stated last term that he would
be “appalled” by destruction of
files, and that the administration
strongly opposed such a move.
Rhodes
was
unavailable
for
comment last night.
HOWEVER,
Edward
Dougherty, assistant to Rhodes,
contends that “the statement last
term (opposing destruction of the
records) was not made for ever
and ever.”
Ernest Zimmerman, another
assistant toRhodes, stated that
“we did not ask the Administrative
Board to do that (destroy files).
They are at liberty to remove
them; it’s their decision at this
point.”
The move to destroy student
records was prompted by a new
federal law that allows students to
see almost all the material in their
counseling files. However, letters
of recommendation to admissions
offices written prior to January
1, 1974 (with the understanding
that the contents were to remain
in confidence), may remain secret.
ZIMMERMAN
argued
that
“the law provides that those
letters submitted prior to January
1 are confidential and should
remain as such.”
However, another clause in the
law, the Family Education Rights
and Privacy Act of 1974, also states
that recommendations used for
purposes other than their original
intent – namely admissions – may
be made available to the subject.
Morris contended that the
files should be made available
for that because of this clause;
in fact, he had sent a letter last
month to Zimmerman explaining
that he intended to make the
files completely open “unless we
receive a contrary directive from
the University.” That directive
came from Rhodes last week in
the letter that asked Morris to
keep the files secret.
According to Morris, “where
the LSA administrative board and
the
University
administration
disagree clearly is in regards to
their definition of that clause.”
“The University position was
that making the files available
would be a violation of the high
school counselors’ rights,” Morris
stated.
Morris said that the LSA board
was then faced with a dilemma
when Rhodes instructed that the
letters remain secret – and the
board was left with no choice but
destruction of the files. Morris
said that a consensus decision of
the board was reached earlier this
week.
Morris also explained that
removal of the records would take
some six months, and could be
considerably expensive.
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RUCHITA IYER/Daily
Members of Central Student Government listen to student proposals at their weekly assembly meeting in the Union Tuesday evening.