The View from the Hill; 3.4.2. Bill of Student Participation in KU Decision Making

on this special hour long edition of the view from the hill a variety of views on student participation in university governance the issue aside last week when the university senate composed of faculty members and elected student representatives adopted a regulation requiring a minimum of twenty percent student representation on all university policy making committees but the arguments preceding that vote not only in the meeting but for a period of weeks and months suggest the variety of views within the university community and what the university is for whom it's for what higher education is about how its procedures are decided and by whom those questions are the subject of this report last march after the university senate failed repeatedly to assemble enough of its members for a vote the university council adopted regulations requiring that twenty percent of the membership of university policymaking committee is these students in september to you chancellor orange charmers spoke confidently and optimistically

of a new plan in his opening convocation address beginning this semester we have adopted a new and innovative procedure that should facilitate meaningful change throughout the entire university faculty members and students working together on a great policy making committee will provide mechanisms for joint efforts at every level of the universe the organization this does not guarantee success will not ensure meaningful results unless that is employed in that waterloo and mutually beneficial sense in which it was written they were not ensure meaningful results and that has avoided or that is used for confrontation that but i am confident and optimistic about its use by students and faculty alike i am and i am optimistic

about the results that was chancellor chalmers in september six weeks later on october twenty second dr thomas gordon deal with a k u school of fine arts introduced emotional university senate to repeal the twenty percent student representation gordon's motion passed to twelve to want it for gordon was quoted as saying the faculty knew more about what should go into the making of a scholar undergraduates at dean court and said i urge that the old enough to sell their academic birthright for a mess of pottage called student involvement student body president bill hubert med students and some faculty members in a walkout from that summit meeting after the student representation regulation was repealed a week later an overflow crowd of more than a thousand students packed with bravado torian the kansas union and overwhelmingly endorsed student body president hubert plan for fifty percent representation when someone suggested that of course students actually help number of faculty members the rallying

cry became to begin anew and gordon to fifty one forty nine or fight a special session of the university senate was set for november fifth to reconsider the student representation issue the day before students rallied in for a strong whole unheard student senator george a lot to say by a white man but that was that representation on irrational illogical grounds and sought protection grounds grounds that representation as you can because you know really what it should be george martin karen bolcom and others haven't member was asked whether students could attend the summit meeting the next day she said my call logs you use student you could show

and show of inflation one issue was if you make it in the drawer where it would stand out there let me hear your voices because if anybody that stands up and says students are significant an option and she recalled members of the heart not someone says your apartment is a mess of pottage i would say who's there and here i am prove it the balcony in the university theater and murphy hall was open for spectators at the next day summit meeting the students could watch as the senate considered again with a student representation the meeting lasted some two and a half hours with a parliamentary maneuvering his attempts to further delay a final decision filibustering mostly prepared speeches some of the speeches given some detailed insight into the importance of the issue and the sometimes heated differences in opinion as the session opened a new version of the regulation and you will hear it referred to as proposed regulation three point four point

two and sub sections was presented by gareth sister professor of english and chairman of a committee an organization in the administration of the university which wrote the regulations there was a motion to approve the regulation discussion character make your mind of the history of it all and some points of information and the tribes to the committee was to propose to do this it was intentional we sent a few weeks ago and taking care of your definitions he's got executives to the dissipation of wasn't diligent and your proposal and give additional definitions as a committee saw fit

the committee has done so by attempting to define executives to the dissipation the nature of a student the nature of policymaking was an item that created a great deal of difficulty and a number of members of the senate and the relationship of policymaking and communities if i could refer to the ansel three point four point to the main entry you'll find a student percentage points build ups about all the twenty percent off from committing these problems too and the settlements three point four point to point subsection one of the thames to find a student and making the minimum requirement six hours of regular enrollment at the university three point four point two point three one section there's a rather complete

exemplification of what the committee considered the policymaking and exempts specifically from the core mission of the bill the dissipation of students and personnel matters although what might be called a local option here wanting all christians are not necessarily excluding three point four point to point to move back up one section for rights restored and elections to ensure but as a patient and has an interim proposal shown such elections impossible to hold org they couldn't be hundreds of expeditions with the final in three point four point to point for physically recognition by the committee a variety of committee structures in the different parts of the universities but it provides a firm guidelines to have principled decisions our policy making companies will be made that will be made at the

department was school level after students have been invited to disagree about for more information on that a few items the committee received six different proposals vestiges of which all three of which are incorporated in this bill preachers suggest that other drugs were not included in this bill the man was one of her patients the committee inquiry white of the resolution and as you can guess the possibility was a visitation would be zero do you think the percentage of the school committee for that reason to not incorporate the updated version of play luckily my own words i would phrase gentleman's agreement language

such as normally and differences of opinion should be taken care of what negotiation but what's the sense of a committee in the us did not constitute rule rather resolution for a provisional ballot great point and the committee rejected that basically as i understand on the assumption that the constituency on a finance presentation danger thank you the committee

assumed silently arms on patients and subject to correction that such a disappointing cleveland will be included in any specific sanction of the rubble against that faculty members did finally one point one of all have a provision for a compliance filing the secretary of the senate every segment of the university would have to file an affidavit saying we have it done this was considered to be on to say particularly what was that point that will be found out after our deliberations the art there's at least one side and the universe and the us invasion and good student interest so the assumption was that the new opportunities is that for running on complying segment of the university and called for the judiciary as a violation of the rules of this rose passed of course but they have one a minute mike

answers partial answers three questions of government why ancient stones have voting representation plants are as i say is only partial a complete it was a combination of the committee that increases adventures and dedication perspective because the bonds among students that apostles which tends to make motions as a writer as a privilege and that ensured breaks for greater more meaningful level twenty percent of a percentage point all the information for the committee oh interesting well the

commons judiciary would take care of that and there any particular persecution andrews was the case would just rest thank you garrett so they're explaining the proposed regulation three point four point two written by his committee an organization and administration of the university williams over to them took the poor to propose a substitute regulation restricting student participation in the decision making process so overt said you're welcome and they also have to move into or

are like to move this next certain comments regarding are interested in this sport and a lot of the issue we're talking about their participation university functioning thank you that we're

going to the government the university senate require that students participate in the government of the university to ensure that participation shock people are on a committee meeting should be open this means that the number of the committees may attend an address meeting subject only to reasonable space and time limitations as a comic is that you essentially restrict attendance or participation of meetings usually

acceptable alternate ways of communicating with no member of that i think many people are ignored the committee names additional information very much gotham

i mean violation of these regulations normally and anyway working with the university committees rule and regulation that universities that we can't guarantee that every single that it would have twenty percent representation of the regulation we'll

talk with her that we know they don't i think it is quite clear that any group that refuse to negotiate with the students in good faith would be in violation of its regulation i look at you because you know it would be interpreted as if not i would appreciate any amendments that would make

it clear i know decision making ability maybe with just anybody participation

that we have in here oh my god but the voting power university committees the power vested in the bottle they are better than the plant will be on the basis of their academic achievement and we thought what we wanted to sustain this were permitted to take extreme an unlikely place

where do and the graduation rate very good but when i do that oh really but if the faculty

that the plate was the degree of about what the third know the author people taken a legitimate court litigation at university and we'll find out in a violent part of no operational think of the people who have the good guy to wait ok very well documented the buckle b the band on our letters to the us and abroad but his body william sober resenting a substitute resolution there was debate and one speaker was john reich the human development and family like department when right before he said against them the substitute motion proposal a professor solar anonymously from the top of a

member of the un a committee who did a discussion of professor soliman small town and five others important and tanzania great deal of language that i would support and the fire resolution contains a proposal to broaden the degraded which students are presented to standing on matters concerning curriculum graduation degree requirements which three pointer appointed does not do things i think are not as the representation under article three professors so as always attractive features that was not i didn't do really considered and gardening route for us not over motion encourages litigation it suggests where people got to do it suggests what is good and right and proper and i think it's it's not very far from the

martin suggesting what is good and right and proper and if you have some contention i'm going to hear about two reminders body that the judiciary he is like any other court how has a limited range of processing its own broad and would be very easy to tie up judiciary for many months senators press here mr kamel if we are to define what we mean by student participation through case law painstakingly one place at the time put together the judiciary major so i want to propose a proper and legal opportunity to snakes of specifications has offered in three point four point two before you knew that is because of him we have an opportunity to make the kinds of specification that will

discourage litigation discourage people from being bringing action before the judiciary unless or until such action is really substantive i proposed a three point four point to as often violent inmate is it already a carefully worked out a compromise of a number of different viewpoints and is a positive consideration and john wright speaking against the substitute proposal of williams over there was some parliamentary maneuvering along the way some faculty members wanted to suspend the rules of the body to permit them at all about it secret voting at a later date on the student representation question they tried three different times and lost each time there was more discussion and suburbs alternate proposal professor robert gets is chairman of the department of mechanical engineering i have a picture

defining issue as i see it suggestions the issue is a very important issue for this modern day does not completely into submission because a person like motherhood as well today's economic policymaking and that is a different issue patients and committees

i do not believe that the supporters of these men under conditional <unk> certainly expect in due course i'm seeing it and management committees with a sign of an all sunni areas and to manage our secrets because without cannot expect no less can continue by considering the option of views on these mandatory conditions mm hmm and that is a reasonable expectation you're

welcome question and the situation there perhaps cha make policy when i was speaking to the substance all the us a lot of it

is i think it's necessary mr jim true to say that the notion that we need committees which make policy twenty one charlie and his condition in a typical guitar for example in line so much different than those of other professional carter i'm actually is effectively a licensed to practice mechanical engineering with an industry with that you can find employment is a mechanical engineer without it can't

engineers occasionally with success