SGA Minutes
7:10 – Sophie Papavizas ’11 calls the meeting to order
Roll Call
Assembly Members Present: Katie Dahl ’11, Liz Ritchie ’11, Miranda Hansen-Hunt ’11, Sara Jane Rodgers ’13, Jennifer Savage ’12, Blair Smith ’12, Sarah Kelley ’11, Gabby Marangell ’12, Mae Carlson ’12, Giang Tran ’11, Duong Nguyen ’13, Adelyn Kishbaugh ’12, Malina Toza ’13, Courtney Pinkerton ’12, Priya Gupta ’13, Ellen Halbach ’11, Irene Shin ’13, Sam Salazar ’11, Lindsey Turr ’11, Heather Taddonio ’12, Kyle Aguilar ’13, Akshyeta Suryanarayan ’13, Hannah Smith ’14, Krista Imre ’13, Pragya Krishna ’13, Elizabeth Olecki ’12, Maya Sachdeva ’14, Daisy Sheng ’14, Olivia Xia ’14, Ali Raeber ’13, Joo Park ’11, Hope Wayman ’13, Kate Gould ’11, Mary Margaret Peebles ’13, Jordan Cottrell ’13, Sarah Schnellbacher ’13, Kathryn Gary ’11, Emily Zhao ’11, Vrinda Varia ’13, Naznen Rahmen ’13, Sarah Capasso ’11, Priya Saxena ’12, Katharine Woolls ’12, Sarah Henkind ’13, Callie Jensen ’11, Sumehda Niranjan ’11, Kerlyne Jean ’11
Assembly Members Absent: Aki Snyder ’11, Isidora Armentrout ’13, Sarah Aubrey ’13, Julie Gorham ’12, Keshia Koech ’13, Tanvi Surti ’12, Tiffany Olszuk ’12
Community Members Present: Julie Mazziotta ’13, Amanda Kennedy ’13, Sarah Jordan ’13, Zandra Martinez ’11, Elizabeth Held ’12, Ashley Hahn ’14, Caroline Kenward, Sarah Theobald ’12, Lena Barnard ’12, Lydia Bello ’12, Tasnim Aziz ’13, Erika Pinto, Amanda Beardall ’14
Announcements
Sarah Kelley ’11: I’m pleased to announce that this is the last round of elections I will be doing. Nominations open at the end of the meeting for all Exec Board positions, Elections Head(s) and the Appointments Committee. Email elections@bmc if you have questions or want to nominate anyone.
Jennifer Savage ’12, Blair Smith ’12: We have some updates about Hell Week, which starts on Wednesday February 16th. Confinement will be shortened from 2-4 to allow dinner at the dining halls from 4-5 and we will start Goodhart performances promptly at 5. Also, no bags will be allowed into any performances. All teams and groups/clubs that will be helling as an organization will need to submit their schedules to the committee by email at hellweek@bmc.Preorders for Traditions sweatshirts will be happening this week and they cost $30 up front. If we don’t get enough preorders, we will return the money to you via campus mail.
Sadie Marlow ’11, Jen Bonczar ’11: We’re here to give an update on the yearbook. We’ve signed a contract, and have started working on it. We’re going to have a website where anyone can submit photos, not from facebook or photoshopped.
Mae Carlson ’12: I went to a faculty meeting before break, I don’t remember what we talked about, but we talked about Praxis, and there seems to be a demand for more Praxis courses.
Yong Jong Cho ’12: The Appointments Commitee is opening another round of appointments for one postion as Computer Access Coordinator.
Susie Kim ’11: Last semester we had seven hearings brought to the Honor Board. One was related to cheating and the other six had to do with plagarism. Abstracts from these cases will be released in at least two semesters.
Laurel Lemon ’11: Thanks for attending my budget workshops, all budgeting forms are due on the 28th at 5pm.
Sophie Papavizas ’11: Plenary is happening on February 20th. There are three workshops for resolution writing coming up, the first one on Wednesday at 8 in Taylor C. The official start time of Plenary will be at 10:30, and breakfast starts at 10.
Your Two Cents
Approval of Appointments Committee and SFC Bylaws
Sophie: We have one quick voting thing before we move on to other discussions. Two committees have some changes to make to their bylaws.
Laurel Lemon ’11: I have two new changes. During this time frame, we’re in between budgets, if clubs have 25% left over from the previous semester, they can now only access 25% of that amount. This is just for clubs who more than 250 dollars. The second change is SFC won’t reimburse for sales tax, which will save the college money, and we want to encourage people to use the tax exemption forms. This goes into effect for this next budgeting cycle.
Jordan Cotrell ’13: What happens to the remaining 75% of the remaining budget?
Laurel Lemon ’11: It just goes back into the pot.
Yong Jung Cho ’12: The Appointments Committee has never had bylaws before, and so I wrote some over winter break, to help with our institutional memory and also so Committee members know what is expected of them. It’s basically how we’ve always been functioning.After the elections, the Appointments committee has to meet two times aside from interview times, we have to hold workshops for all applicants, all members of the Association are eligible to apply for any committees, and we have to use the most up to date technology. Late applications will not be accepted 24 hours after the deadline, unless approved by the Vice President and the rest of the Committee. If two or more members of committee are absent, interviews will be rescheduled. We have a blog where all information will be posted. If a position is not filled after three rounds, there will be an Assembly vote about the relevance of the position. All members of all appointed committees will submit progress reports and exit reports about what they did.
Sophie: We will vote to approve, disapprove or abstain the new and edited bylaws.
SFC bylaws Approved.
Appointments Committee bylaws Approved
Uncommon Grounds and the Honor Code
Sophie: Some people are going to present what has been going on with Uncommon Grounds, and then we’ll talk about the Honor Code in general.
Richard Clow: I am the assistant director of Dining Services, and used to be manager of Uncommon Grounds. I was asked to come by the Honor Board, you probably noticed signs going up in Uncommon about theft last semester. It was noticed that incidents of theft in the café and in dorms had increased. The October financial reports for Uncommon were extremely poor, retail sales were down, but costs were up. There were a variety of contributing factors, but external theft seems to be a problem. From people getting free refills to just taking food from the freezers or taking orders that aren’t theirs. It’s been a problem since I started here, but it has gotten much more widespread than in the past. We have taken people to the Honor Board in the past. We don’t want to get to that point again. One of the things we want people to know is that there are now security cameras observed 24/7.
Susie Kim ’11: Do you have any personal stories?
Ashley Hahn ’14: It appears I have a good eye for theft. I’m a freshman, and I’ve caught five people stealing. I chased people into the lobby, and since I’m not a supervisor there’s not much I can do. I’ve confronted people, but they are pretty unreasonable, and are unwilling to pay for what they have taken. I’m really excited about the security cameras. Thefts really do add up, and it’s something that needs to be taken care of.
Lindsey Parrish ’11: I hate having cameras, and the idea that we have to be watched. I’m a supervisor and I had to really reconsider if I wanted to work there. It makes the workers feel bad, we’re all students who are busy and have things going on, but this shouldn’t happen. I saw someone steal something last night. I think it’s a shame that it has to happen this way.
Richard Clow: That’s one of the things that bothers me most. I know it’s not just students stealing, but this is student on student crime. It has affected how we do business, and affected employee moral. It’s not something I expect from Bryn Mawr students. We’ve had to look at our finances because we’ve had to cut costs due to theft. If we do catch someone stealing, we will take it further. We can’t afford to let these things go. Ultimately these things affect you as students. I thought you guys policed yourselves. Risking your academics for free soda doesn’t seem worth it.
Susie Kim ’11: In addition to the minutes, the Honor Board and the café will be sending out an email addressing the rise in thefts.
Honor Code Brainstorm
Susie Kim ’11: We want to talk more about the Honor Code and get some ideas about how to promote or appreciate the Honor Code around campus.
Liz Ritchie ’11: I think it would be interesting if we could give facts, about what our campus can do because we have the Honor Code. Maybe printed on table tents or something.
Susie Kim ’11: Something like Snapple facts that we could put over campus would be good.
Sophie: If anyone has any comments about the Honor Code in general, about how we should respond to the issues would be good too.
Madison Schaeffer ’11: I’ve been on the Honor Board since I was a freshman, and it’s something I really care about. It was a big reason I came to this school, and I think it really facilitates a feeling of respect. Over the past semester it seems like things have gone downhill a bit, and it’s really sad for me. It’s about students respecting students and I hope that people can take some time to think about what it means to have an Honor Code.
Katie Dahl ’11: Maybe talk to HAs and Dorm Presidents, to get the word about these Honor Code appreciation events, because people might be more likely to read an email from them as opposed to an Activities email.
Ashley Hahn ’14: I think something we could work on is to show that everything isn’t as little as it seems when you steal. Maybe people aren’t realizing that things add up.
Sam Salazar ’11: I honestly think no matter what we do as a group, it doesn’t change the minds of those who are going to steal. I think we have to take things to the highest level. It doesn’t matter if you steal a cup or something from a dorm, everything should be punished equally. I put something in a friend’s fridge, not even a public fridge, and it was taken.
Courtney Pinkerton ’12: To follow up on emphasizing that things add up, I’ve heard of school laptops being taken from the library. That’s obviously more than a cup, but that means they aren’t available for student use. I think if this is tolerated, it is just going to escalate.
Jen Bonczar ’11: Following off the past comments, I think that in creating an appreciation day, we should emphasize safety in the community. I don’t know if people read the ACBs, but there is someone who just sneaks into rooms because no one locks their doors. Part of the Honor Code day should include safety and awareness.
Amanda Beardall ’14: I think we should also focus on why we have the Honor Code. Maybe set up a table with examples of the benefits of the Honor Code to students.
Courtney Pinkerton ’12: I’m the COPS Head, and we’ve had increased numbers of theft on campus. It is going to be something we need to address, who is actually stealing.
Ashley Hahn ’14: What are the consequences of theft on campus?
Susie Kim ’11: Theft has usually gone to the Deans panel, but it depends on how the confronting party wants to handle it. Just to put this is a bigger perspective, with the economic downturn there has been more theft nationwide, so it’s not just a Bryn Mawr problem.
Irene Shin ’13: In terms of Honor Code week, I think graphics would be good. Maybe the reason we don’t pay attention to the Honor Code is because there’s not visual association with it.
Richard Clow: To answer Ashley’s question about theft consequences, the theft six years ago that went to the Deans panel, banned her from the café for the semester. She was forced to repay what she stole, write letters to everyone involved and had to undergo counseling. I think it should have been a bit more severe, but that didn’t end up happening.
Tasnim Aziz ’13: In response to having a logo for the Honor Code, maybe someone could volunteer to design something.
Pragya Krishna ’13: Some theft stuff has been really bizarre. I came back from break and found that my ceiling hatch was open. Maybe we could do a wall of shame?
Susie Kim ’11: I don’t think having a wall of shame would really be appropriate for the Honor Code.
Liz Ritchie ’11: Point of Information – that was probably Facilities who left your ceiling hatch open, because they went into a lot of rooms over break.
Sarah Theobald ’12: As a junior who was abroad last semester, where there wasn’t really an honor code, it made me appreciate the Honor Code more. I think it would be interesting to have a day without the Honor Code if that’s feasible. Being aware of what it would be with out the Honor Code might make us appreciate it more.
Sam Salazar ’11: Is this putting us at risk of losing the Honor Code? Not that it matters for me but you know? Will it be taken away?
Sophie: What was kind of mentioned was if the students don’t have a response, someone else will respond.
Sadie Marlow ’11: I’m on the Honor Board, and I think people should think about both the Academic and Social Honor Code. Everyone probably needs a refresher in the Social Honor Code. The Academic Honor Code is really drilled into us, but the Social Honor Code can sometimes be a little more vague. The reason this keeps happening is because no one says anything when they see something happen.
Kathryn Gary ’11: If you want to create a logo that represents the Honor Code, you should have a contest.
Sarah Kelley ’11: I just want to reiterate that we should emphasize the more positive effects of living under the Honor Code. I think our conversation is isolating the wrongdoers, but I think everyone has dealt with this in some form. We’ve all probably broken the Honor Code in a small way.
Susie Kim ’11: We should have a confession day like in Mean Girls.
Jen Bonczar ’11: Maybe instead of a wall of shame, we could collect stories of positive experiences with the Honor Code and next to those stories have stories of those who have experienced having something stolen.
Madison Schaeffer ’11: I think people need to realize that Bryn Mawr has a unique way of dealing with what happens. People need to keep in mind that there are serious consequences for going in front of the Honor Board or a Deans panel. Stealing is not worth risking your future, in case you have to report any of those incidents to grad schools or employers.
Blue Bus Discussion
Sophie: There have been some rumblings about changes to the Blue Bus schedule, and we’re trying to figure out what we as an Exec Board can do to address this.
Sarah Theobald ’12: I saw the email from Steve Green about new changes, but it seems like there are still some problems. The Tuesday/Thursday Swat van is problematic. Is there anything we can do?
Sophie: You should send any problems you have with the schedule to Steve Green and copy your dean, because the Blue Bus could affect your academics.
Old Business
New Business
8:12 – Meeting adjourned