Graduate and Professional Student Assembly DRAFT Minutes

Big Red Barn Greenhouse April 24, 2000 5:00 p.m.

Attendance: 1999 - 2000 GPSA Members 4/26 9/27 10/25 11/22 1/24 2/28 3/27 4/24 Jean Ahn P P P P P P P P Bill Bauerle P P P P P P P A Dennis Carlson P P P P Pat Carr P P P P E P P P Rong Fan P P A A P A A P Stefan Hames E P P P P P P P Wendy Harris P A A A A A A A Chitkala Kalidas P P A A A P A A Peter Kaskan P P E P P A E A Krysta Levac P P A Charles Marentette P P P P P Emily Meseck A P P P P E P P Krista Mowry P P P A P P P P John Schwarz P Uresh Sheth E P A Daniel Simmons P P P A A P A P Lakshmi (Vatsa) Srivatsa P A P P A P P A Kevin Sherper-Walker P P P E P A Others Present: Michael Cosh, Erica Doerhoff, Sergei Krasulya, Lotus Wang, Philip McPheron, Stephanie Tinsley and Bonnie Bailey

Call to Order

The meeting was called to order by Stefan Hames, President of the 1999–2000 GPSA, at 5:10 p.m.

Open Forum

Bonnie Bailey, Office of the Assemblies, stated that GPSA members should have received an invitation to the President’s Reception.  She requested that members RVSP for the event if they have not already done so.

Minutes

The minutes of the March 27, 2000 GPSA meeting were approved as submitted.

Announcements and Reports A) Committee Reports

Jean Ahn, Human Services/Sloan, announced that the increase in the Student Health Insurance Plan for next year will not be more than eight percent and that the Student Health Insurance Advisory Committee is working to set it lower.  She stated that they are trying to find local providers for vision and dental care as these options will be included in the health plan next year.

Krista Mowry, Nutrition, stated that the General Committee of the Graduate School is currently revising its Code of Legislation.  While this process was being done, it was discovered that the appointment term for the GPSA representatives to the General Committee is for one year, instead of two years as it had been thought.  She asked members what would they like done about the situation.

Members suggested that the appointment terms officially be changed to two year, staggered terms.

S.Hames remarked that he had thought it already was a two-year renewable term.  He agreed that staggered terms are a good idea since this allows for continuity in the position, especially because the first year tends to be spent in “learning the ropes”.

K.Mowry noted that the faculty representatives to the General Committee are appointed for four years.  She stated that it is really important to have graduate representation on the committee even though there are no voting privileges.  The General Committee wants the input of graduate students since many of the issues affect graduate students.

A motion was made to have two seats, in alternating two-year terms, on the General Committee of the Graduate School.  The motion passed unanimously.

Michael Cosh, Civil Engineering, stated that the GPSAFC has completed its funding schedule.  The last date to turn in receipts is the Monday after classes.  He stated that the GPSAFC received approximately $80,000 from the Student Activity Fee and allocated approximately $115,000, but so far only $30,000 to $40,000 has actually been spent.  M.Cosh noted that the GPSAFC has extra money left over every year.

S.Hames stated that the SA has a Students Helping Students program that is designed to help students in need, such as victims of a fire.  He stated that the GPSA might consider using this extra money towards a GPSA version of this program.

Business of the Day A) Graduate Student Health Insurance

S.Hames stated that Dean Walter Cohen asked for budgetary approval of his proposed health plan the day after the last COR meeting.  The plan received approval.  Tomorrow, the Academic Deans will be informed about the health plan.  The GPSA still does not have anything in writing about the plan.  S.Hames stated that the big picture is more or less set in place, but the details still need to be worked out.  He noted that while the GPSA does not have a strong voice in the issue, he sees no reason to try to take more action since Dean Cohen has the students’ interests at heart.

Members asked what would happen with the plan next?

B.Bailey suggested that Dean Cohen be invited to another meeting in the fall.

Members agreed that this was a good idea.

B) Fellowship Stipend Payments

S.Hames explained that under the current system, people on fellowships receive their money in three lump payments.  However, the payments are not evenly distributed and the payment before winter break is the smallest, even though it has to be spread out the longest.  An alternative proposal to this issue is to have monthly payments direct deposited.

S.Hames stated that he sent out an informal survey about this issue to gpsa-l.  He directed members’ attention to the survey results, which he had passed out at the beginning of the meeting.  He stated that the results are rather mixed.  While it appears that almost everyone seems to want direct deposits, only 40% of respondents stated that monthly payments would be helpful in budgeting.   It was also noted that this system would be difficult for students abroad because of fund transfer fees.  The most frequent suggestion made was to allow students to choose which payment plan they would like to receive.  Unfortunately, this cannot be done due to accounting reasons.  In addition, direct deposits of the three lump sums is not an option since the money being transferred is relatively large and it is deemed as too risky by the University.  S.Hames commented that while some respondents seemed concerned about losing interest that could be accrued, he felt that the actual interest that could be earned is not that much.  He also noted that almost everyone else in the University receives either monthly or biweekly checks.  S.Hames stated that the proposed system will not move forward if the GPSA does not pass it.  However, the administration could change this decision at a later date.

A vote was taken on the proposed changes to Fellowship Stipend Payments.  The proposed changes failed by a vote of 0–5−2.

C) Amendment to Section 5.1 of the GPSA Charter

Pat Carr, GPSA Vice President, stated that Section 5.1 of the GPSA Charter covers the election of GPSA officers.  Section 5.1 states that officers must be elected by a two-thirds vote.  He stated that he would like to amend the language in the Charter to require a simple majority because under the old system, multiple votes could become necessary.

Members asked if a person could win with a plurality of votes?

P.Carr responded that a majority of votes is required and a plurality will not suffice.  He stated that the amendment would be made by striking the last sentence of section 5.1 and then it would follow Robert’s Rules of Order.  He concluded that it is not possible to vote on the Charter amendment at this meeting since a two-thirds vote is needed to pass a Charter amendment and not enough members are present to take a vote at this time.

Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned by S.Hames at 5:57 p.m.

Respectfully Submitted, Stephanie Tinsley, student clerk