Campus Center Room 204
Thursday, November 30, 2006 7:00pm
Members Present: Meg Ambrus, Jillian Flynn, Molly McCadden, Jan Arbaugh, Adrienne Lee,
Margaret MacRae, Ayesha Siddiqui, Michele Chapdelaine, Devin Burke, Rae-Anne Butera,
Mary Opler, Ali Woodruff, Aliza Leventhal, Shadavia Jones, Kamille King, McKay Lelanc
I. Call to Order: Meg
A. Meg called the meeting to order at 7:10pm
II. Opening Activity – Molly
III. Special Guest: Julie Ohotnicky, Dean of Students
A. Dean of Students’ role
1. What is the role of the Dean of Students? What kind of problems do you resolve, and
what is your general role on campus?
2. Perhaps the Dean herself should ask to be invited to different events/teas, because
students don’t immediately think to do this
3. How the people in Student Services assess themselves – what is most effective?
4. Ask students who go through the judicial process what that process was like (maybe
communicating through e-mail is more effective)
5. Office hours: MF 3:00-4:30
B. Mental Health/Wellness Concerns
1. Pub – fabulous idea because we don’t role model appropriate social drinking in
colleges
2. It’s an important skill to know how to navigate, and college is an educational place!
3. Meet needs of college liability-wise and of students socially
4. Safe, appropriate place to use alcohol for people over 21 of age and also to hang out
with friends who are under 21
5. One hour a week for faculty/staff/student interaction
6. Fun meeting place
7. Can only serve beer and wine, but would like to bring in local breweries/wineries for
special programming
8. Include a CDO session on how to navigate that social situation
9. Unlikely for this to supplement the college’s income
10. People in the town coming and hanging out? – guests need to be accompanied by
someone with a Smith ID, or have a 5-College ID?
11. Maybe start out by not putting limitations?
12. Earlier stages – heavier crowd initially, and then lightening up a little bit
13. Security – public Safety officers
14. Space – decorations, lounge-y, funky, get dressed up
15. Actual glassware (not plasticware), and plastic encourages removing it from the area
16. Capacity – not sure yet; define an area
17. Name – use spring semester (up until spring break) for ideas, and name it at senior
ball?
C. Health Services
1. Will hire new staff – myth
2. Have heard that people don’t like Health Services, and hard to get appointments
a. Around midterms, they were very full and thus difficult to get an appointment; this
has eased up a bit now at the end of the semester
3. Juggling schedules around so people can be seen more frequently
4. No current plan for more staff
5. Seeing around the same number of students as last year
6. Will see students in crisis situations sooner
7. Connect students with ResLife staff/Area Coordinator whom you recognize are in
crisis
8. Perhaps extra help available, through ResLife, as an apprentice to Counseling
Services? Peer educators? Healthy Heads does something similar.
9. Sometimes people see ResLife as authority figures and don’t want to talk to them
a. There is value in having options
10. Has there been a drop-off in the number of groups Counseling Services has offered
this year? How is the number determined?
11. If a student has a group idea, they should have a conversation with Dean Ohotnicky,
who can then talk to Counseling Services
a. Give Dean Ohotnicky or the director of the area feedback, because they need
to know if the services for the students are not working
D. Themed housing
1. Only works if people want it
2. Smith is set up well for themed housing
3. Tell them what you want and where you want it, and administration will help
4. You have to program for your house community and for the Smith community; this
can connect you better
5. There is nobody talking about themed housing as an actual concept for the near future
6. Process for creating themed housing?
a. At Clark University, they put the option out there and saw if anyone applied,
and 35 groups applied (15 chosen)
b. 200-300 students lived in themed housing, out of 2200 students
7. The process hasn’t been started, but the idea has been floating around (at her
interview, at this meeting, from faculty/staff/students)
8. 4 years ago, there was a survey (good response) from which arose themed housing
a. Subcommittee, discussion
b. Seriously looked at themed housing until the dining issue took its place
c. A good percentage of students were interested in themed housing
9. What is the hottest topic in your office now?
a. Difficult dialogue, how to continue the conversations about class, race,
difference, and how Student Affairs is going to support these students who are
clearly asking for these conversations?
b. Different venues for these conversations (intergroup dialogue, faculty forum,
someone to come to house, web chat, etc)
c. Strategic Planning and Student Affairs’ role
i. Supporting leadership training, wellness and balance
ii. Wellness coordinator
iii. Leadership opportunities
iv. More pre-orientation programs
E. Bias Complaints Committee
1. Last spring submitted a proposal for a complaint process, which went to faculty who
had a very lively conversation, and tabled it at the last meeting of the year, and didn’t
resurface until now
2. Had a conversation today about it, and it has been revived; faculty still have concerns
over what was presented, but they have been told how important it was to students
3. There is a process; a committee will be pulled together to review a bias incident,
president will select people, etc.; but not a good process
4. Conversations have returned, and we will figure it out as an institution, and not
without students
5. Provost Bourque would like to see it resolved by the end of the academic year
F. Reflection
1. Molly: no themed housing, she’s talking about themed housing from surveys
2. ORC already gives money to orgs., and houses are trying to get money anyway
3. Admissions? – Is Smith’s current housing a big draw?
4. Can we fix problems that we already have?
5. Students should have a house where they are comfortable
IV. Minutes
A. Motion to pass minutes from 11-16-06 passes 13-0-2
VI. Committee Updates
A. Aliza
1. Have over 170 orders for care packages, the majority of which are deluxe
2. Doing abroad panel next week
3. On the Thursday night that classes end, Class of 2009 will do hot tubs
B. Margaret
1. Wishes to have more capable people on her committee
C. Ayesha
1. Good turnout for care packages
2. Next semester: CDO session every month directed toward a specific graduate school
exam
3. Ice skating on Valentines Day?
D. Michele
1. More cases
2. Will have to do a training recap for committee members
E. Ali
1. Having a meeting tomorrow for the senior reps, open to all seniors
2. Having tea, ordering for 30 people
3. Excited for care packages
F. Shadavia
1. Care packages are fun, but good turnout
G. Mary
1. Party policy – scheduling issues for meetings
a. Want later parties; noise isn’t an issue, but rather staffing, so working with Public
Safety on plans
2. Not a lot of knowledge about party policies; a disconnect
H. Molly
1. Went to Senate, brought a passionate HP, and rallied the senators
2. Got e-mails from senators thanking her!
3. Dislikes themed housing
4. Winter weekend – have fun
I. Kamille
1. Sent proposals about unity org. collaborations in the spring
2. Will meet with the HPs on Tuesday to make sure that every house has a diversity
chair and that the diversity committee is a resource to each chair, promote activities
each week
J. Jan
K. McKay
1. Faculty meeting (when the power went out) – core capacities of students (what they
should leave with)
2. Preliminary report – core capacity – everything, with emphasis on quantitative skills
3. Only way for students to achieve these core capacities is to make it required
4. Entrance/exit/end-of-year exam?
5. Historically, about 1/3 faculty are against core requirements, 2/3 are for it but unable
to agree on specifics
6. Usually someone from Admission comes to tell them to keep core requirements
7. People who fulfill Latin Honors to receive a certificate/acknowledgment
8. Didn’t get through full agenda because of power outage but had an interesting
discussion
9. CAP subcommittee meeting on Monday: extend free drop deadline
10. Honor Board sanction possibly meaning no Latin Honors
L. Jill
1. Party for Ada J-grads – champagne toast, and party in the Conway House to the
Common Room 4-6pm Wednesday 6 December
2. More Adas graduate in January than traditional students, and they don’t get the
traditional celebration
3. Ordering shirts, hope to get them before Christmas
a. Baseball shirt that a cabinet member designed
M. Devin
1. Thinking about the SAF
VII. General College News
A. Ayesha: Cheerleading team for sports – send the people to Devin and Mary
VIII. College Updates
A. ACRA (committee in charge of budget) meeting right before break on Tuesday on
balancing the college’s budget
1. We need to focus on admissions and attracting students to Smith, making
ourselves a more selective school
a. How can Smith attract more applicants?
B. Fireside Chat – Thursday 12/7 at 4:15pm in the Red Room (Goldstein Lounge)
chai tea, regular tea, coffee, crackers
1. If the first one goes well, the spirit of this will continue
C. Faculty Panel Monday 12/4 at 5pm on White Privilege/Class Privilege
1. Big turnout would show our commitment to these discussions, and
administration would see this, and it would affect future programming
IX. End of Semester Business
A. Secret Snowflake
B. Plans for 12/14 meeting
X. Return Surveys
XI. Motion to Adjourn
A. Meg motioned to adjourn at 8:59pm