Student Assembly

Whereas, the Student Assembly (SA) is charged by its Charter to;

Article 1.3 Welfare of Student Community The SA will have the authority and the responsibility to examine any matters which involve the interests or concern the welfare of the student community and to make proposals concerning those issues to the appropriate officers or decision-making bodies of the University.

Whereas, the Student Assembly Charter enumerates the power to;

Article 1.1 Legislative Authority Over Policies

The Student Assembly (herein after referred to as the SA) will have legislative authority over the policies of the Department of Campus Life and the Office of the Dean of Students, and have the authority to review the budgets and actions of said departments.

Bylaw 1.1.a Pursuant to the authority of Article 1, Section 1, the SA shall by majority vote have the authority to require at any time information directly from a department or a specific individual within that department concerning the budget, policies, or actions of said department. The request for this information shall be made at a SA meeting.

Bylaw 1.1.b Should a request [for information, as described in 1.1.a above] be refused, the SA by simple majority vote may request the information be given to the Vice President for Student and Academic Services who shall forward it to the SA. The Vice President for Student and Academic Services shall act unless otherwise directed by the President, pursuant to Article 1, Section 5.

Whereas, the Resident Advisors (RAs), employed by the office of Campus Life, refer students to the Judicial Administrators Office when they are caught breaking the Campus Code of Conduct.

Whereas, the Judicial Administrator’s Office and the Dean of Student’s Office work together to identify and enforce infractions related to alcohol consumption.

Whereas, the Judicial Administrator’s Office works through the Dean of Students Office to notify the parents of students who have repeat alcohol-related offenses as enumerated by the Administration’s Alcohol Abuse Amelioration Strategy.

Whereas, the Administration’s proposed changes to the University Recognition Policy and Tri-Councils implementation of those changes will affect the entire Cornell Student Body.

Whereas, the Student Assembly declared its intention to look into the potential effects of the proposed changes to the University Recognition Policy and the administration positively stated how they “look forward to having the SA begin their work, and will facilitate the process as we go forward.”

Be it therefore resolved, that the Student Assembly requests any information from the Judicial Administrators Office and the Dean of Students Office regarding alcohol consumption on campus.

Be it therefore resolved, the Student Assembly specifically requests all available information since August 20th, 1990 regarding the number of alcohol related Judicial Action on campus detailed by;

• a) Time of year
• b) Location of residence of offender (dormitories, Greek housing, or off-campus)
• c) Location of incident (dormitories, Greek housing, or off-campus)
• d) Residence of the offender
• e) Student status of offender (age, graduation year, semester of enrollment)
• f) Gender

Be it therefore resolved, the Student Assembly requests statistics detailing the number of students who have had one alcohol related incident, the number of students who have had two alcohol related incidents, the number notifications sent to parents of students who have had two alcohol infractions, the number of students with three alcohol related incidents and the number of students who have been placed on academic probation and/or suspension due to three or more alcohol related incidents. In addition, the Assembly requests that the information detailing these incidents are broken down by the academic semester and living location (dormitories, Greek housing, or off-campus) of the students.

Be it therefore resolved, the Student Assembly requests the information by October 1, 2010 to allow time for analysis of the data before the October Trustee meeting.

Be it therefore resolved, if any information is considered to be confidential, the voting members of the SA will submit to all confidentiality agreements so as to perform their function as Representatives of the Student Body.

Be it finally resolved, upon passage this Resolution be forwarded to the Judicial Administrator, the Vice President for Student and Academic Services and the Dean of Students Office.

Respectfully Submitted,

Vincent Andrews ‘11
At-Large Representative
Student Assembly President