Dozens of students packed Price Center Ballroom at this week’s A.S. Council meeting in support of the Promoting Understanding and Learning Through Service and Education referendum, which would raise the A.S. campus activity fee by $7, effective fall quarter.
During the session for public input, leaders of student organizations that provide academic and financial aid to underprivileged students spoke on behalf of their members in support of the referendum.
Academic Success Program Director Alvin Kwong spoke about the implications the referendum will have on A.S.P.
“”With new facilities, we will need a full-time staff and furniture costs,”” Kwong said.
Earl Warren College Junior Senator Daniel Palay proposed an amendment to change the wording of the referendum that funnels funds to “”institutional financial aid”” instead of “”local need-based financial aid.””
Palay’s amendment failed 8-9. The council then voted on the referendum as a whole, which passed 16-0-2.
Councilmembers then voted to immediately discuss an addendum to the contract the council maintains with the company Cloud 9, which provides vehicles for the A.S. Safe Ride program.
Several councilmembers addressed the grammatical peculiarities in the addendum.
The sentence in question stated, “”We will Add Thursday night between the hours of 11 p.m. and 3 a.m.””
Thurgood Marshall College Junior Senator Kyle Samia was the first councilmember to draw attention to the issue.
“”According to my public education, I was taught that in the middle of a sentence, unless something is proper noun, you shouldn’t capitalize it,”” Samia said.
Sixth College Sophomore Senator John Cressey agreed with the importance of grammatical correctness, crediting his “”all-boys private Catholic high school.””
John Muir College Sophomore Senator Meghan Clair noted that it would be difficult to justify delaying the start of a potentially serious program. Other councilmembers objected to the item because its overseer, Assistant Vice President Student Services Kaveh Cyrus, was absent.
After several more minutes of debate, the amendment to fix the grammatical errors failed. A vote on the entire item followed, passing 12-2.
During reports, A.S. President Harry Khanna introduced a policy that would allow the “”chancellor to reduce or eliminate compulsory campus-based student fees prior to their expiration upon the request of the student government elected to represent the students.””
Khanna mentioned that while Chancellor Marye Anne Fox was open to the idea, Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Joseph W. Watson disapproved of it because it could politicize the vice chancellor position.
“”That’s why they get paid the big bucks, to deal with that sort of stuff,”” Khanna said, in defense of his new policy.