ASNAU SENATE MEETING #14
TWENTY FIFTH SESSION
OFFICIAL MINUTES
Date: February 7, 2013
Number on council: 12
Date of Senate Meeting: February 7th, 2013
Number present: 12
Prepared by Shelby Burton
Senate Chairman Ryan Lee called the Senate meeting of the 2012-2013 Senate to order at
4:02 P.M. in the Havasupai Room A & B of the University Union.
Roll Call
The following Senators were not present at the meeting:
-All Present
Approval of Minutes
Motion: Senator McDiarmid move to approve the minutes from last week’s Senate
meeting
Second: Senator Chan
Discussion: None
Vote: Unanimous, last week’s minutes have now been approved.
Call to the Audience
Unfinished Business
None
New Action Business
Motion: Senator Fox move to vote on item a, IA: Shantelle Kotowich, $400
Second: Senator Chan
Discussion: This will fund attendance in Fort Worth for a national art education association
conference; three students from NAU will be in attendance, however she is the only one
applying for funding. Next year, she will be expected to present at the same conference.
The trip is for one weekend and the money will go toward airfare; travel costs are
estimated to be around $900. Ms. Kotowich is excited to represent NAU and bring back
everything that she learns to the art education department because they are a very tight
group of about 100 students. In years past, they have brought back lesson plans, workshop
activities, and sponsorship materials. Senator Lake asks what year she is; this is her third
year at NAU and she has two years left in her program.
Vote: Unanimous, item a (IA: Shantelle Kotowich, $400) has been approved
Motion: Senator Woodhouse move to vote on item b, IA: Edwin Tenney, $400
Second: Senator Boruch
Discussion: This IA will help fund a mechanical engineering capstone team design a
prosthetic foot for a nonprofit clinic in India. Other teams have major sponsors, like GORE,
where they have opportunities to receive nearly $3000 for funding. However, this
capstone team’s sponsor is a nonprofit organization and cannot provide monetary
contribution. The college has provided $125, but cannot provide anymore. In addition, one
member will be going to Bolivia to help implement the project into their health service
plan. He explains that by voting yes, it should be everything that ASNAU stands for. This
will also spread awareness to others that some countries cannot afford prosthetics.
Senator Woodhouse asks for clarification for the lumber contribution; he acquired it at a
job site and it adds up to be around $100 worth of lumber. Senator Fox asks how much
discretion they had in choosing the project. They chose it entirely on their own because
they became attached to the idea of helping another country. Senator Lake asks what the
breakdown of money is; they were thinking that they would contribute 20% and ASNAU
could contribute 80%. Out of the $400, $300 would go towards materials and $100 would
go towards testing devices. With the other money that they have, they bought plastic and
gages. Five people are in the group. Senator Lake asks why the chose Bolivia rather than
helping NAU; issues with providing prosthetics with insurance and legal policies are
troublesome. A team member previously worked in Bolivia, so he understands their needs.
Senator Fox feels uncomfortable having ASNAU be responsible for a capstone project as it
directly contributes to a grade. He is not against the project, just against having ASNAU
fund it. Senator Smart says that we are not going to be responsible for the grade; without
funding it, the only way that they would suffer is financially not academically. Senator
McDiarmid understands Senator Fox, but believes that this is no different than funding a
leadership conference which will better their academic path. Senator Woodhouse agrees,
as she understands that the college cannot fund anything else. Senator Tenney states that
ASNAU has funded capstones in the past, but he is concerned about consistency with the
last discussion in the last meeting. Chairman Lee states that the reason why this came to
the senate floor is because there is nothing in the bylaws about it. Senator Cross says to
keep in mind that this is a different senate and therefore they may make different
decisions. Senator Creer understands her point, but says that they have already tried
funding from other areas and it has happened in the past, so if they really want to stay
consistent then there is not reason why ASNAU cannot fund it. Senator Lake asks how
much paid individually; one has paid $80 and one has paid $30 in addition to a $100
donation of lumber. The representative reminds them that this is a service project and that
it will help NAU’s reputation. They will also be collaborating with several other
universities. How is this different than Engineers Without Borders asking for funding to go
somewhere? Senator Reddig is concerned with the materials, as funding is not supposed to
go to materials. However, he agrees that it is not affecting their grades and it can only
benefit them. Senator Smart agrees. Senator Woodhouse agrees with Senator Creer’s
comments. While capstones should be funded by colleges, this is an odd circumstance.
Senator Lake says that sometimes career choices are accompanied by financial
obligations—like musicians know they need to afford what is accompanied with that. How
is this different? Senator Boruch says that whether it is passed or not, ASNAU is not
funding an A or an F.
Vote: 1 abstains, 8 are in favor, 3 are not in favor, item b (IA: Edwin Tenney, $400) has been
approved
Motion: Senator Boruch move to vote on item c, OA: NAU Ad Club, $500
Second: Senator Creer
Discussion: This will fund a trip to Chicago for the American Advertising Federation Career
Fair from February 20th through the 23rd. This student conference will give them the
opportunity to network, meet professionals, get resume help, and seek internship/job
opportunities. Since attending conventions last year, their membership here on campus
has increased from four to 25 people. The entire trip will be costing $5000 for 17 people to
attend. The hotel will cost about $1000. They just received a fundraising check today for
$50 from Buffalo Wild Wings. Senator McDiarmid asks if this would be the club’s first time
attending the conference; last year, they attended but never asked for funding. Senator
Woodhouse asks what kind of job opportunities were there; there were jobs from all over
the country, as well as outside of the countries. 40 companies were there last year and
more are expected to attend this year. Senator McDiarmid asks for specific budget details;
some of the money will be covered by the club, some fundraisers, and hopefully by ASNAU.
Senator Woodhouse asks how sure they are that 17 people will be in attendance; 15 are
definitely going, the remaining two are very likely to attend.
Vote: Unanimous, item c (OA: NAU Ad Club, $500) has been approved
Motion: Senator Lake move to vote on item d, SB 25-54: NAU Ad Club, $3000
Second: Senator Lopez
Discussion: None
Vote: Unanimous, item d (SB 25-54: NAU Ad Club, $3000) has been approved
Motion: Senator Chan move to vote on item e, OA: Ice Jacks D3, $500
Second: Senator Reddig
Discussion: This will partially fund money for membership fees, as well as a recent Santa
Rosa trip for a tournament. $100,000 is in their annual budget, which goes toward road
trips, buses, hotels, security, jerseys, league fees, front office staff, a website designer, and
referees. Most of the money is out of pocket from the team members; they make some
money from home games, but that goes towards mainly security. The more that the
attendance increases, the more that they have to pay for staff. Senator Lake asks how they
are doing this year; currently, they are ranked sixth and in their last game at ASU they
qualified for the regional tournament which will take place in Springfield, Illinois. Senator
Woodhouse asks for clarification; is the OA solely going toward league fees and is the bill
solely for the trip? How do the dues work and what does this team look like compared to
the D2 team? Unlike the D2 team, they have more guys; they also pay for their regional fees
out of pocket. Senator Woodhouse points out that they did not ask for any funding last
year.
Vote: Unanimous, item e (OA: Ice Jacks D3, $500) has been approved
Motion: Senator Lopez move to vote on item f, SB 25-55: Ice Jacks D3, $3000
Second: Senator Boruch
Discussion: Senator Woodhouse asks if the wording should be changed on the bill to state
specifically one thing that the bill will be funding. Because they were not sure how much
exactly the dues would cost, they just put both in the bill so they could turn in all receipts at
once for flexibility.
Vote: Unanimous, item f (SB 25-55: Ice Jacks D3, $3000) has been approved
Motion: Senator Tenney move to vote on item g, SB 25-56: Black Student Leadership
Conference, $3500
Second: Senator Lopez
Discussion: This will fund 11 students that attended a leadership conference in North
Carolina on January 10 through the 13. The theme was “embrace the leadership challenge;”
the students learned many lessons that they plan to apply to their own life. Senator
Woodhouse asks what they specifically took back; the representative explains that she
learned how to put herself out there. In addition, she now plans to create an organization
on campus to give back to the community and help others learn the same lessons. This
organization will be entitled 13 Stripes and will help promote diversity and help minorities
network to become more productive and involved. Because there is a spelling error, the
senate asks if they should put the extra $500 into an OA. Senator Cross explains that it was
actually a simple typo and they only need the $3000.
Motion: Senator Tenney move to amend the bill to state $3000, rather than $3500
Second: Senator Boruch
Discussion: None
Vote: Unanimous, the bill now states $3000, rather than $3500
Discussion: None
Vote: Unanimous, item g (SB 25-56: Black Student Leadership Conference, $3000) has been
approved
Motion: Senator Boruch move to vote on item h, SB 25-57: Music Teacher’s National
Association (MTNA), $2057.76
Second: Senator Chan
Discussion: This money will fund four people in their chapter to go to a national
conference in California on March for five days and four nights; the funding will go toward
airfare and hotel, where they will be able to learn about new curriculum material for piano
teachers and new methods of teaching, as well as tips for running an independent studio.
Senator Fox explains that they can apply for an OA to clear their money out of that line; he
suggests voting in favor of the bill and having the exec team take $500 of the money out of
the OA line. Senator McDiarmid asks if this is their full budget; it is just a rough estimate
and does not include tax, fluctuations in airfare, or any unexpected hotel fees. Each student
is putting forth about $25 for a fee and any extra costs (i.e.: food, curriculum). The
registration fee was waived because they will be volunteering for the conference. Senator
Fox suggests amending the bill to be $500 less and making an OA later. Senator Cross
mentions that eventually the two lines will be condensed, so she thinks they should just
keep it as is. Senator Boruch asks what the repercussions are if they just keep the bill the
same. Senator McDiarmid agrees with Senator Cross; making them come back for an OA is
just more paper work and less convenient. Senator Woodhouse says that it seems that they
are not putting forth a very large percentage of money toward the trip; what if they each
paid for half? Senator Lake states that half may be a little extreme; what if they each paid
an extra $50, taking $200 off of the bill total? Senator Boruch asks if they would feel
comfortable with this change; they plan on doing more fundraising, so this is a good
compromise.
Motion: Senator Fox move to amend the bill to read “enact and allocate up to $1857.76,”
rather than $2057.76 in the opening and in the ending clauses
Second: Senator McDiarmid
Discussion: None
Vote: Unanimous, the bill has now been amended to read “enact and allocate up to
$1857.76” rather than $2057.76 in the opening and in the ending clauses
Discussion: None
Vote: Unanimous, item h (SB 25-57: Music Teacher’s National Association (MTNA),
$1857.76) has been approved
Motion: Senator McDiarmid move to vote on item i, SB 25-58: USITT, $2712
Second: Senator Woodhouse
Discussion: The USITT, or the U.S. Institute of Theatre Technology, plans on attending an
annual conference over spring break in Milwaukee that is four days long. The overall cost
will be about $10,000 for 12 students to attend; the registration fee is $226 per person, the
club has done some fundraisers, and there is $1800 in their account which will all be
allocated to the students. There will be seminars and about 300 exhibitors for job,
internship, and grad school opportunities. To clarify, two students did receive scholarships
for registration fees, but the same amount will be allocated to them—it will just be going
toward their airfare.
Motion: Senator Boruch move to read “an act to allocate up to” in the opening and ending
clauses
Second: Senator Lake
Discussion: None
Vote: Unanimous, the bill now reads “an act to allocate up to” in the opening and ending
clauses
Discussion: None
Vote: Unanimous, item i (SB 25-58: USITT, $2712) has been approved
Motion: Senator Woodhouse move to vote on item j, SB 25-59: Student Association of Fire
Ecology (S.A.F.E.), $2000
Second: Senator Fox
Discussion: This will fund a club that runs a volunteer burn crew to conduct a prescribed
burning in either Nebraska or Arkansas (depending on weather condition) on March 16 to
24. The money will cover the cost of vehicles, which will be two trucks. Unless the weather
changes, they plan on camping. Seven people will be in attendance; roughly $526 will be
the cost per person. Senator Chan asks how they selected those who are attending;
whoever had a desire to go was chosen. Each person who agreed to going paid a $50
retainer and application fee. Senator Woodhouse mentions that she worked with this club
last semester and purposely allotted money for this opportunity.
Vote: Unanimous, item j (SB 25-59: Student Association of Fire Ecology (S.A.F.E.), $2000)
has been approved
Motion: Senator Boruch move to vote on item k, SB 25-60: Sigma Chi Fraternity, $3000
Second: Senator Creer
Discussion:
This money will help fund Province, a Sigma Chi traditions that switches locations each
year. It is a leadership conference that will help them find better rush and brotherhood
techniques. They will be renting out the business building and the banquet hall at High
Country Conference Center. Not only is Sigma Chi affected by this conference, NAU is as
well; Sigma Chi has made some of the greatest leaders on campus, including those who
serve for ASNAU. Everything taught at this conference will be brought to other
organizations on campus. In addition, their alumnae continue to contribute to NAU and
this conference brings their alumnae back to the school. Senator Woodhouse asks how
many NAU students will be attending; around 100 students will attend, as well as the dean
of the business college who was a previous Sigma Chi. 15 to 20 students will be in
attendance from each school that travels to be here. If the banquet totals to be $6,000,
what other financial sources are there? $325 are the dues per semester, which is mainly
going toward risk management and a guest speaker. Senator McDiarmid asks if it is open
to all NAU students; parts can be opened, but they are not actively searching for people to
attend. The former mayor of Flagstaff is a Sigma Chi and he contributes not only to NAU
but to Flagstaff as a whole. Senator Woodhouse expresses concerns with not having a
budget; is the money going toward food, a room rental, or something else? Some senators
are hesitant about funding an event that is also paying for non-23 fee paying students to
attend. They explain that because their ritual is involved, not every person can be
attending it. the money will be going toward half of the food (provided by Sodexo) and half
toward the venue costs. The event will be taking place next weekend. Senator Lake asks
what other fundraisers they have done; they have gotten money through doing concession
stands. Senator Smart sees a conflict with sending 30 Kappa Alphas to California, while this
could potentially be funding 80 non-NAU students. They explain that more than half are
NAU students, and the money from this bill is less than one half. Senator Cross points out
that ASNAU has funded similar events. Senator McDiarmid feels uncomfortable funding an
event that is closed to some of the NAU population. Senator Lake asks if they will be
charging dues to attend the conference; each member is paying an addition $25 in addition
to every incoming member paying the same amount. They point out that this is excellent
PR for NAU for others to see the strength of their chapter and of this university. Senator
Lake calculates that the dues total to $27,000 and they would like to see where that money
is going. One representative explains that this event is no different than the Gamma Phi
Beta event that was funded last week or the ROTC banquet that was funded last year;
however, he notes that if they would like to table the bill until they receive a budget he
understands. Senator Cross explains that clearly the 100 NAU students are directly
benefitting from this money. Senator Woodhouse agrees that they should table it until they
receive a budget. Chairman Lee reminds the senate to be considerate of their scheduled
and that he will be calling a special session this week.
Motion Senator Lake move to table item k (SB 25-60: Sigma Chi Fraternity, $3000)
Second: Senator Fox
Discussion: None
Vote: Item k (SB 25-60: Sigma Chi Fraternity, $3000) has been tabled
Chairman Lee calls a special session for Monday night at 10 PM.
Motion: Senator Woodhouse move to vote on item l, OA: Kappa Alpha Fraternity, $500
Second: Senator Creer
Discussion: This will fund students to attend the province council convention at USC, where
they will learn leadership skills that will directly impact their fraternity and school. 30
guys will attend to participate in breakout sessions that will help them improve their
community service projects and recruitment. Mainly, they wish to expand their
philanthropic efforts. They will also learn about the history of why they were founded.
The money will go towards travel costs and hotel fees; they contacted a busy system and
are looking into renting a passenger van, which totals to about $986.
Vote: Unanimous, item l (OA: Kappa Alpha Fraternity, $500) has been approved
Motion: Senator Boruch move to vote on item m, SB 25-61: Kappa Alpha Fraternity,
$2375.43
Second: Senator Reddig
Discussion: Senator Lake asks how much each member is being asked to pay; from dues,
food and gas will be paid for, which is estimated to be about $500 to $600.
Vote: Unanimous, item m (SB 25-61: Kappa Alpha Fraternity, $2375.43) has been approved
Motion: Senator Fox move to vote on item n, OA: NAU Club Women’s Water Polo, $500
Second: Senator Creer
Discussion: The representative clarifies that the budget has a typing error; the $480 should
actually be a negative amount. Last year, there was a different leadership in place and they
never fundraised. This year, they have already done a BTO and raffle fundraiser and a car
wash; they have also received a donation. They plan on doing another BTO fundraiser and
car wash in the future. The team will be representing NAU in four states. The dues are $60,
but if they were higher then they may scare girls away. Senator Creer asks how many
people are going; the amount of people depends on the tournament. Senator Woodhouse
asks what their dues go toward; they pay for league fees and referee costs.
Vote: Unanimous, item n (OA: NAU Club Women’s Water Polo, $500)
Motion: Senator Boruch move to vote on item o, SB 25-62: NAU Club Women’s Water Polo,
$3000
Second: Senator Chan
Discussion: Senator Lake says that it seems that ASNAU is funding the full amount. The
representative reminds him that there is a typing error; the amount on the budget should
be a $480 not a positive $480. Senator McDiarmid reminds the senate that their dues cover
more than trips; they also fund PES classes and equipment. They also have a coach that
volunteers and these additional expenses are not on the budget. Senator Woodhouse
reminds the senate that they have fundraised.
Vote: Unanimous, item o (SB 25-62: NAU Club Women’s Water Polo, $3000) has been
approved
Executive Report
a. President- Sammy Smart
-President Smart is working with administration to find a social justice
headquarters; she has even contacted clubs and students to generate interest.
Elections packets have gone out, so please remember that ASNAU is a nonpartisan “safety zone” so just stick to encouraging people to run and vote. Do not
campaign for others. There is a new member on the elections commission, but
there is the same commissioner. President Smart apologizes for any errors on
the elections packets. The strategic planning pizza party is on Tuesday,
February 26th. They will be reviewing documents and involving students in
conversation. As far as ABOR goes, they voted in favor of the opt-in fee;
Governor Brewer presented the budget. All but one voted in favor of providing
additional money for higher education.
b. Vice President of Student affairs- Annsley Niemann
-VP Niemann reports that equality week is next week; please sign up to table in
the union. The tabling opportunities are two hour increments five days a week.
If you cannot make one, contact her. The main event is the Coming Out
monologues, which are personal stories that show support taking play on
Tuesday at 7. Equality week will include a video campaign, RHA’s safe zone
training, and PRISM’s drag 101 workshop. Put up your posters please and check
tomorrow for more posters! The Snowjack express is going well; the attendance
has doubled in numbers from the first week. Thank you for promoting all of her
events. Once club headquarters receives its furniture, there will be a catered
grand opening on March 6 from 4 to 7. Please invite your clubs.
c. Vice President of Academic Affairs- Ryan Lee
-See Monday’s report
d. Chief of Staff- Makenzie Mastrud
-Chief of Staff Mastrud sat in on the liberal studes committee to draft and rewrite
the purpose of taking liberal studies courses. She also sat on the information
system security committee to go over how information is kept private; the
committee is very department-focused. Sitting on the residence life advisory
council committee, they discussed a possible 1.89% increase in dorm costs. On
the strategic planning meeting, they made it clear that they really appreciate
student input on where money should be allocated. If you need any information
about elections, contact Sammy Smart, as Ms. Mastrud will be in the election and
would like any questions to have neutral answers.
Staff Reports
A. ASA- Jack, Danielle, Shayna
- No Report
B. Public Relations- Matt Villa
-PR has been working on posters for equality week; hang those up because it is
extremely important for students to know where their 23 fee is going.
C. ITS-Joey Smoll
-ITS put the elections information on the website, so direct students there if they
need information!
D. Special events- Tony Buchta, Sara Martin
-Special Event sent out invitations to the deans of colleges and organizations for
the state of the student. They have made several steps forward in reference to
the concert this week and are way closer to finalizing the plans. The banquet has
officially been planned, but the date may change. They are also working on the
gold axe awards.
E. NSG- Representatives
-NSG is figuring out dates for an event and that they will keep ASNAU keep you
posted!
Committee Reports
A. Appropriations: Senator Woodhouse says that all of the bills will have budgets
next week.
B. Legislative: No Report
Senator Reports
College of Arts and Letters
a. Shannon Boruch-Senator Boruch reports that she is thankful for
everyone passing her bills; she sat on a committee and learned a lot.
She is excited for elections!
b. Anthony Lake-No Report
College of Social and Behavioral Sciences
a. Samantha Cross-Senator Cross reports that she sat on the university
assessment committee meeting on Friday. She is writing a bill
currently.
b. Jeremy Reddig- Senator Reddig reports that he made the ad club bills.
College of Health and Human Services
a. Derek Lopez-No Report
b. Dominique Creer-Senator Creer reports that they will be meeting with
their dean tomorrow. She is in talks of a bill with one of her clubs.
She discussed with her education professors and they would love to
have a senator and a rep from their college to sit on each other’s
meetings.
College of Education
a. Kelsey Smart-Senator Smart reports that they are working on holding
a forum with their college; the date is TBD. Perhaps there can be an
education professor there. Senator Smart is working on a few bills.
b. Adam Fox-Senator Fox says that he sat on his committee as needed
and served his office hours.
College of Business
a. Jeremy Chan- Senator Chan reports that they are waiting on a
response for a dean’s meeting. He wrote a bill that will be on the
agenda next week. She is helping making the video for equality week.
b. Derrell Tenney- Senator Tenney reports that he met with the FCB
student director and informed them of what we do. He also checked
the mail.
College of Forestry, Engineering, and Natural Sciences
a. Oregon McDiarmid-Senator McDiarmid reports that he sat on the
town hall meeting last week; he worked with Sammy on the Club
Sports issue.
b. Shayla Woodhouse-Senator Woodhouse reports that she has been
working with a few clubs and an individual for funding.
Advisor Reports (Rick Brandel and Art Farmer)
Rick Brandel— No Report
Art Farmer— Dr. Farmer announces that there are a few more awards next week—
organizational awards and three individual awards. Stop by and say hello to the new
additions to their office!
Discussion Items
Budget: There is an up to date budget, so please be responsible for understanding and
reviewing it. Notice that the senate bill line and OA line has 47.9% remaining. If needed,
the exec team can reallocate money into these lines; however, there is still $62,000 in it.
Senate Clerk: Please get signatures in on time (3:00 PM on Wednesdays) and communicate
with Ryan or Shelby if changes need to be made. If there are multiple changes that need to
be made, then he can combine them all and send them to Shelby at once. Deadlines are
extremely important.
Parliamentarian: Though a senator can sit in on as parliamentarian and senator
simultaneously, ASNAU will still be conducting interviews for a new parliamentarian and
there should be a new person hired by next Thursday.
Announcements
Congratulations to Kelsey Smart on being the member of the week for her hard work on the
mentor program!
Congratulations to Sara, Sally, and Shayla for being the True Blue winners!
Adjournment
Motion: Senator Cross
Second: Senator Boruch
Unanimous
6:06 PM