Meeting Minutes
Thursday November 3, 2005
Agenda
• Call to Order
• Roll Call
• Absent: Lauren Lefton, Kelly Swaine, Brent Ryan, Kristin Cook, Laura Ball
• Accepting or Amending of the Agenda
• Motion to accept
• i. passed
• Accepting or Amending of the Minutes
• Change “Mr. Levy” to “Ms. Levy” in section IX.
• Motion to accept
• i. Passed.
• Officers Reports
• President's Report
• i. Nearing the end of the semester and everyone is busy, but it's important that all the committees remain proactive. As student leaders, committees should make proposals, take initiative. People need to stay on task to get it done.
• Vice-President's Report
• i. Alumni and Commencement Committees unite to sell “spirit wear” to Case Law alumni.
• An alum came into SBA office, interested in buying CASE LAW clothing. Can use CASE website to announce sales to alumni; need to work with administration.
• ii. LexisNexis Faculty-Student Tea Time: Thurs Nov 17th at 3:45pm featuring, "Geography: Know where your Professors have worked."
• All professors are invited. Students will be given lists of where attending professors have worked. Changed to tea time social, at a time when the least number of students have class. There will be cucumber sandwiches and tea. There are 44 professors and every senator needs to sign up to invite a professor.
• Secretary's Report
• Treasurer's Report
• i. Things are going “swimmingly” in treasurer's realm. Orgs are taking advantage of speaker fund. 10% of budget goes to speaker fund. Mr. McLaughlin thinks a lot of orgs will still be coming forward. $31,761.64 in budget account. Rollover was roughly $10,000. Things are good.
• Senate Counsel's Report
• i. Robert's Rule of the Fortnight: he will answer any questions people have about the rules.
• Debate and chairing of meetings: each member gets two turns to speak. Doesn't include brief questions. When debating or addressing, have to address the other senator through the chair. Like the Brady Bunch. Jan has to talk to Marsha to get to Cindy. Example: “point of information, this senator would like to ask the chair to…”
• “point of information” is a question: this is interruptible. We are generally on a time limit, so the member with the floor can choose whether to accept the point of information.
• To maintain impartiality, the chair shouldn't participate in debate. But if he thinks that there's been an important omission, he may temporarily relinquish the chair to another member and join the debate.
• Point of order: not debatable, no vote, no reconsideration of the matter, not amenable.
• Motion to reconsider: is meant to correct a hasty or erroneous decision. The only person who can move to reconsider is someone who voted “yes”. Has to happen very shortly after motion has passed. Interruptible before the next person starts speaking. Requires a second, debatable, not amenable.
• Committee Reports
• Student Life
• i. Bar review at B-side. Confusion with SPILF was straightened out. They're having the date auction in the spring.
• Sports : Flag Football
• i. Devlin Cary: talking to CSU for a while about flag football on Sunday, Nov. 13. There have been posters placed around school, there is a sign-up sheet on the peg board outside the SBA door. The 1L senators are asked to announce it to their sections. There have not been any female sign-ups, but it's co-ed. There will be about 7 people per team. There need to be volunteers to sit at the table in the rotunda.
• ii. Ms. Choy said the advertisements need to be more attractive and get people's attention. Mr. Carey asks 1L senators to talk to him about it.
• iii. Mr. Arnold asks whether outside people can be brought in. Mr. Cary answers probably not. Restricted to law students.
• iv. Mr. Cary trying to get the rules relaxed.
• v. Ms. Nwaesei says that people should be able to make their own teams; otherwise there may be less women playing and turn off less competitive people.
• vi. Championship Case team plays the Championship CSU team in the final.
• Curriculum: Dean's Forum
• i. Mr. Kringel: Went really well, had about 60 people. Pizza ran out. Next one scheduled for Nov. 22, but will be rescheduled. Wants to thank Mr. Malbasa and Ms. Choy for their help.
• Building and Grounds: Mr. Schmitt and Mr. Kurnik were formally introduced to each other. It was a special moment.
• i. Flag is no longer dusty. Dry cleaner did it free of charge. Flag folded correctly by the former boyscouts, Mr. Schmitt and Mr. McLaughlin. Drycleaner couldn't refold it correctly.
• ii. Bathrooms in the annex. When it was installed, they only had cold water, but now it's only boiling water. Talked to Alice Hunt, and the plumber will be here next week to fix it.
• iii. Looking into a policy of cleaning out the refrigerators.
• iv. Mr. Schmitt asked whether there a preferred way of soliciting information from the student body. Mr. Mortenson says the new website will be a good place. Patty Kim announces that there will be a new survey going out to students and they can attach their questions.
• v. Ms. Nwaesei asks whether there is a way to reroute the brick because women can't walk on the brick with their heels. Feet get stuck.
• Website: new SBA website address.
• i. Ms. Choy: Laura ball is awesome. Has dedicated her life to the website.
• ii. www.case.edu/orgs/sba
• iii. To post, the website works like a blog, which will include a listing of all the events at the law school. Students will be able to post comments, questions, and suggestions.
• iv. Will post an SBA photo.
• CSO: meeting with Sarah Polly for Nov. 17 th .
• SBA Retreat: looking to have fall retreat at bowling alley. Called lanes, but no reservation yet. Have to decide whether we want SBA or SBA and guest. Mr. Mortenson says it's only open to SBA.
• i. Friday Nov. 11. After bowling league ends. Still looking for a time that best fits people. Took an informal vote of SBA members. Concluded that most members preferred the 11 th .
• Library: Printers…they're all working again!
• i. Got paper for the SBA office.
• Honor Court:
• i. James Tsai: had a meeting for the Honor and Professionalism committee with Prof. McMunigal. They're working on the procedural codification regarding how a student would bring a case to the honor committee. Don't want a backlash from the students if the faculty/administration did it independently. Therefore, student focus groups will be formed to address issue.
• Subcommittee Reports
• NEW: Big Buddies Toy Drive Committee
• i. Annamarie Holmes, Kristen Cook, Kristen Iriarte
• ii. Ms. Levy is sending around a sheet to have sign-ups to sit at table in the rotunda. A huge box will be placed in the rotunda for donations. Goal will be to fill the box by the beginning of December. We will involve Big Buddies student organization.
• Old Business
• By-law amendment: Enforces the bar against having SBA meetings scheduled on religious holidays. Proposed by Ms. Levy and Mr. Tsai.
• i. The goal is that don't just want to play lip service to respecting holidays.
• ii. Rationale for the changes: Article 2.01 of the by-laws deals with SBA meeting dates.
• iii. Rationale for the entire by-law: as representatives of the student body, we should not schedule meetings (SBA) on religious holidays. Other orgs will be highly encouraged not to schedule meetings on those days; except when an event is to celebrate the holiday.
• Mr. Zink asks why the by-law amendment is just limited to the University holidays. Ms. Levy answers that because there is already a policy, it's administratively easier. If there are other holidays missing from the University's designation, which is another issue.
• Mr. Neely asks whether Mr. Zink is proposing to make a list of holidays for the University. Mr. Zink answers, no, but that there is an arbitrary line being drawn, and he can't agree with the legislation.
• Mr. Mortenson asks who is in charge of designating holidays? President Hundert sent a list out at the beginning of the school year.
• iv. Mr. Arnold motions to reject the by-law change.
• v. Mr. Malbasa thinks that it's not an arbitrary list because the University published it.
• vi. Mr. Zink says that it just indicates that certain religions deserve more recognition than others. And our by-laws should reflect no religion, and SBA should just worry about making quorum at meetings. Then we don't have to worry about not recognizing an obscure holiday
• vii. Mr. Samtoy doesn't want an org to feel like they can't have a meeting even though there are no members observing that particular religion.
• viii. Mr. Arnold doesn't think we need it in our by-laws; instead it should be considered during meeting scheduling at the beginning of the year.
• Ms. Levy respects that the SBA will try schedule around holidays, she says that it just doesn't happen.
• ix. Mr. Davolos suggests that the wording be changed to make it non-exclusive.
• x. Mr. Zink points out that this is a reaction to what happened earlier this year and thinks this can be resolved by scheduling, and it is the responsibility of the individual who wants the holiday observed.
• xi. Mr. McLauglin states that there are LLM students from all over the world that celebrate holidays not on the list. It would disenfranchise Case students. By making exceptions to the bar of having meetings on religious holidays, we're diluting the whole thrust of the by-law.
• xii. Motion to extend debate:
• Rejected 8-10.
• xiii. Ms. Levy point of information: while it was a miscommunication, the only reason why the situation earlier this year was rectified was because of administration interference.
• xiv. Motion to reject amendment as written.
• Passed. 10 for, 6 opposed.
• New Business
• Budget Requests
• i. National Security and Law Society: Annamarie Holmes
• ii. See attached proposal. Case is chartering a chapter of the National Society and Law Society. The leadership conference being held in Washington , D.C. will be instructive in establishing, running, and fostering a successful student organization. There will be leaders from throughout the country representing schools that have established chapters. The conference will be a good forum for creating connections with other schools and introducing Case to the national organization. The NSLS will be a major benefit to the student body at Case. Judging by the interest in counter-terrorism classes and the interest in pursuing careers in government intelligence agencies, there will be a high membership number.
• iii. Mr. Samtoy asks where students usually get money for conferences, whether most of the money will go to the flight, and whether NSLS will be asking for more money in the future.
• Ms. Holmes answers that she came to SBA because it generally handles the budgets for student organizations; that a lot of the money will go to the flight, but only because that is the bulk of the cost for attending the conference; and, yes, NSLS will be appealing the SBA for more money in the future because they were yet formed when the budget was decided.
• Ms. Nwaesei explains that the office of Dean Andelman has a process for students representing organizations that would like to attend their national conference to apply for funding.
• iv. Motion to postpone
• Passed. 4 opposed.
• v. Sports committee: Devlin Carey
• $40 to rent the field; CSU is paying half. $20 for refs. $150 for charity: ABA approved charity for breast cancer research. If players make a donation we can mitigate costs. Now there is a basement of $40. Hoping for $150 for the charity.
• Motion to approve $190.
• Passed. 1 opposed. .
• vi. SBA Retreat Committee: Devlin Cary
• Ambassador lanes. $270.
• Mr. Tsai motions to reduce the money to $150.
• Rejected.
• Motion on floor for $270:
• Passed. 5 opposed.
• Mr. Mortenson moves to reopen debate for NSLS budget request:
• i. Mr. Herrick believes this is not the typical situation in which a student org attends the national conference. Attending the conference is important for operating the NSLS. It should be thought of like a budget request to run the org.
• ii. Mr. Malbasa points out that it is likely that NSLS can get money from another source and we don't want to encourage student orgs to come to the SBA for funding that is available elsewhere.
• iii. Ms. Holmes apologizes for not getting everyone's comments in the minutes, as she had to participate in the debate and was unable to continue recording the meeting.
• iv. Mr. Malbasa motions to provide funding on the condition that Ms. Holmes can't get it from another source.
• Passed. 4 opposed.
• Announcements
• Big Buddies Toy Drive starts November 7, 2001.
• Cheers & Jeers
• Adjournment