Student Assembly

Minutes
Cornell University Student Assembly
October 13, 2011
4:45pm — 6:30pm
Willard Straight Hall, Memorial Room

A. Gitlin called the meeting to order at 4:45pm

1.  I. Call to Order / Roll Call

• Voting members present: S. Balik, S. Breedon, D. Brown, A. Chopra, R. Desai, A. Gitlin, R. Gitlin, D. Goldberg, M. Gulrajani, G. Hoffman, J. Kay, D. Kuhr, J. Lee, A. Meller, J. Mueller, D. Muir, A. Nicoletti, A. Pinkney, N. Raps, J. Rau, P. Scelfo, U. Smith, E. Szulman, N. Treffeisen, A. Wolford, E. Yeterian
• Non voting members present: A. Santangelo
• Unexcused absences: A. Ravaret

2.  II. Approval of the 10/6/11 Meeting Minutes

• Minutes approved

3.  III. Presentation by Gilbert Delgado, Andrew Magre, and Tim Marchell

• Gilbert Delgado is the University Architect, Andrew Magre is the Associate University Architect
• Tim Marchell is Director of Mental Health Initiatives at Gannett
• Suicide prevention and mental health protection — installing safety nets for bridges around campus
  • Support under bridges to be extended and mesh to be extended horizontally under the bridge — allows people to take in the view, as the net can only be seen if one looks over the side
• Friend to Friend program — program to help students better respond to friends that are struggling emotionally. There will be an article in the Cornell Chronicle this coming week
• Presenters went to Switzerland, as they use the same steel mesh that Cornell plans on implementing — learned to install them, maintain them, and rescue people from them
• There was concern of people being thrown into the nets, but the Swiss reported no problems with this
• E. Yeterian: What prevents people from rolling themselves off once they land on the mesh?
• Gilbert: Interviews have shown that hitting the net is a wake up call for people — they realize that they were going to make a big mistake
• S. Breedon: Is there a system that will alert the police when someone lands in the net?
• Gilbert: There is a thermal detection that will be installed
• M. Gulrajani: What is the timeline on this project? How much is approved
• Gilbert: Hoping to get approvals by the end o the year as well as finish the construction documents by that time. Hoping to start construction in the Spring. Plan to work on two bridges at a time at six weeks of construction per bridge.
• S. Breedon: Regarding the suspension bridge, why encase it in the mesh rather than extend the mesh horizontally as with the other bridges?
• Gilbert: The suspension structure is very different (issues with span, capacity, and wind) so an encasement is the best way to proceed

4.  IV. Open Microphone

• None

5.  V. Announcements / Reports

• Campus Trustee Event Announcement — D. Evensen
  • There will be a student campus trustee session next Tuesday (10/18/11) in Mann Hall 102
  • Campus trustees are student / employee / faculty elected trustees that discuss concerns of the campus
• Capital Semester Program Announcement — Zoe Nelson
  • There will be a capital semester program in Spring 2012 (only) in Albany, New York
  • Internships with NY State Senate or NY State Assembly
  • Great opportunities for students to work with real policy and learn about the interplay between policy and politics
  • Will be going to meetings, meeting lobbyists, working in the office — will be learning a lot a gaining experience
  • Outcomes:
    • Cornell students have done really well in this program
    • Some students have been asked to stay past the academic session and stay until the end of the legislative session — some received job offers right after graduation
    • Great stepping stone to law school, other government position, etc.
  • Not limited to political science majors
  • Information session in MVR 153 at 4:30 tomorrow (10/14/11) that will last about an hour
  • Sophomores, Juniors, and Seniors are eligible
    • Sophomores are only eligible for the NY State Senate and international students are only eligible for the NY State Assembly
  • Applications for the program are due next week
• Club Sports Team Announcement — Thomas Hayford
  • SAFC funding issue
  • Hayford speaking on behalf of 29 club sports team (over 800 students)
  • All teams have high costs for travel, facilities, officials, equipment, etc. and funding from the University is critical to the team’ success
  • Regarding the SAFC
    • There have been major changes to the funding application process, leading to a larger number of requests for funding
    • There are lower caps in place, making it hard to accommodate all requests
  • Previously, club sports teams were awarded $10,000 annually in funding. Now the amount is under $5,000
  • Previously, average dues per team were between $100 and $200, some were $800 to $900. Now, dues will average $200+
  • Most teams will not be able to compete in leagues anymore (some tournaments cost $2000-$3000, which is the current allocation per semester)
  • Some teams have tried to compensate by cutting competition, but this will not work in the long run
  • Club sports are very important to Cornell — they are eager to work with the SA to resolve the funding issue
  • Problems with current funding process:
    • The application process is easier, leading to a huge raise in funding requests
    • Caps have been lowered to a point that some organizations cannot function
    • Should be criteria based on organizations, number of members, and priorities
  • In the long term, club sports teams are really interested in starting an official governing body for club sports. Will be working on this plan in parallel with solving funding problems this semester
    • Want to have a legitimate club sports president in the University to work with resource allocation, funding, alumni outreach, risk management, etc.
  • A. Nicoletti: Current concerns: lowered caps, process of handing in applications, increase in requests ($1.3 million compared to $900,000 last year), increase in number of groups (432 compared to 371). He is looking forward to working with the sports teams and the SAFC to change policy. He hopes that club sports team will eventually be by-line funded so that the SAFC will no have to allocate funds to them. Currently, the SAFC has already committed funds, but the issues will hopefully be assessed for the upcoming Spring semester
  • R. Desai: This year, the SAFC has funded more than every before. Keep in mind that club sports teams are not the only groups suffering from the lowered caps — everyone must attempt to find some middle ground. The teams should consider the semester advance options — can receive $4,000 for a semester
  • Hayford: The advance option only works for one semester club sports, as other teams will be left with $0 for the Spring if they take the advance. Club sports are different than other organizations: whereas no funding for certain groups means that they cannot hold certain events, no funding for club sports means that they cannot function at all
  • D. Kuhr: Example of types of costs?
  • Hayford: Differs from team to team. Speaking for himself, entry fee for tournaments are can be $900, travel is several hundred, referees are $150-$200 per game, facility use is $1300+ as they have to go off-campus
  • D. Kuhr: Does the University charge for facility use?
  • Hayford: It depends on the team
  • Brianna Reid: Regarding costs, water polo spends $1500 per semester for lifeguards alone
  • D. Brown: Is on the club volleyball team and understands the frustrations with funding. Her team has adjusted by changing their tournament schedule to compete more locally. Recommends that two semester long club sports should take the advance for Spring semester and alter the tournament schedule
  • Hayford: Changing the schedule will alleviate fund issue for some teams, but it is still not enough. Entry for tournaments is $600 and travel can get very expensive
  • Elizabeth Staten: Is on club figure skating team. Lynah rink charges $190 per hour and the team practices for 3 hrs a week. The more elite skaters practice 7–10 hrs per week. They are doing what they can: rescheduling, raising dues, tapping into alumni fundraising, etc. They only compete 3 times a year, but their competitions are more expensive. Regional competitions are not feasible for them
  • J. Mueller: Commends club sports teams on getting together so quickly. Reminds SA that club sports teams are not the only ones suffering — performance groups are also suffering. SAFC should maybe consider teams that represent the University
  • Michael Szaper: Is on club hockey team. Dues were raised $150 per person since freshman year — now $800 per person. Their league is very competitive and the league schedule is very strict, so it cannot be worked around. The team gets fined if they do not show up for games. Also, uniform requirements are expensive for the league as well, so their dues are hard to restructure
  • G. Block: There was $170,000 in funding last year that was not spend. Is there any way that other groups can have access to that?
  • R. Desai: The University capping system prevents rollover allocation. The University system does not have one big account that all the groups have access to — each group has their own account. When funds are allocated, all the funds are distributed among the group accounts. A grant could potentially be used as a rollover
  • Ileana Betancourt — Is on club soccer team. Important that Cornell supports club teams more than they have. Club sports are important for the student body in that it allows students the opportunity to play in a social and competitive environment without the time commitment required of the varsity team. For her team, their dues have already risen by $250 and they are struggling to figure out where to spend their funding. They play at last two games per week and will be travelling at the end of the year
  • N. Treffeisen: former member of club sailing team. The sailing and skiing teams have reached out to alumni via phonathons, as they were previously varsity teams. Recommends that other teams looking into phonathons as it is unfair that only sailing and skiing have access to that option
  • Rebecca Velez: Is on club ultimate team. Stresses the importance of club teams, especially for those that do not have a varsity team (ultimate, rugby, etc.). Some students come to Cornell specifically for sports. A long term solution is important, but asks that the SA and SAFC be aware of the clubs in jeopardy this fall and upcoming spring
  • J. Kay: is on club field hockey team. Says it is important that clubs have a liaison to the administrative office, as administrative support is needed to help coordinate funding.
  • Hayford: Has been researching other schools — other Ivy Leagues have great club sports programs with good administrative ties. Hopes to use them as examples
  • Ileana Betancourt: Many teams are doing a lot on their own — there are even a few that do not have coaches
  • Larry Kogos (co-chair of SAFC): the SAFC will be meeting tomorrow (10/14/11) to discuss issues. Their options are to give everyone some money, or to be subjective with funding certain groups. They will try to reach a balance point in terms of fairness. They are working with everyone and appreciate their efforts
  • N. Raps: Funding is currently a very important issue for the SA and the SAFC. Asks that the club teams stay in touch and email both groups, as meetings are currently happening to discuss the issues. The SAFC co-chairs are also available to speak to the groups (Larry Kogos and Kevin Song)
  • Hayford: Would like to reemphasize the main priority: short term solution for this semester and the next. Goal to restructure for the long term. Asks people not to bash the SAFC, as they are trying to work together

6.  VI. Business of the Day

• Resolution 16: Announcing Student Support for the NYC Tech Campus — G. Block, E. Szulman, A. Wolford, R. Gitlin
  • Work is being done on the website, videos are being created, etc.
  • What is the tech campus? It is not going to compete with Ithaca College and will not drain the funds of the University. The tech campus will not only be for majors of technology, but rather all disciplines.
  • Students of tech campus will be an interdisciplinary hub to solve real problems in NYC
  • New York Mayor Bloomberg requests a minimum 250,000 ft2 campus in phase one, which will hopefully expand to 1 million ft2 in the future.
  • Proposal is to put the tech campus on Roosevelt Island (across the river from Weill)
  • NYC will provide $1 million to spend, but Cornell will also be spending money — will be receiving a lot from alumni funding
  • R. Gitlin: cornellstudents.nyc.com — working on creative videos and looking for more blurbs from students. There will be a meeting later (10/13/11) to brainstorm other ideas. Alumni have started a petition on change.org to get as much support as possible
  • N. Treffeisen: What is the specific reasoning for this resolution compared to the last one?
  • G. Block: Voting yes on this resolution is saying that the students do want the tech campus and that the SA supports it
  • G. Block: Compared to Stanford, Cornell students seem to want the tech campus more.
  • P. Scelfo: Students seem to love the idea of the tech campus. Can the SA write bills that say the student body instead of the Student Assembly?
  • N. Raps: Yes, the SA is elected to represent the students, so resolutions can be created regarding the student body
  • N. Raps: Reminder that this resolution is unfinished business from the previous meeting, so it can be voted on today
  • J. Mueller: Believe that the tech campus is an investment. Has the administration laid out short term costs to cover student activities and events? Where would this money come from? Will students be affected negatively for the next few years before the tech campus starts returning as an investment?
  • G. Block: Cornell is receiving money from company and government contracts as well as philanthropic efforts, so the university will not be spending too much
  • A. Gitlin: Is there more specific information that can be discussed? Ideas presented so far have been fairly general
  • G. Block: There are many projects already lined up for the tech campus, but much information regarding the campus is kept private among the Board of Trustees until the deadline is reached
  • Call to question, seconded
  • Call for acclamation, no dissent
  • Resolution 16 passed
• Resolution 17: Smoking Habits & Behavior Referendum — U. Smith, G. Block, N. Treffeisen
  • N. Raps: Reminder that this resolution is unfinished business from the previous meeting, so it can be voted on today
  • G. Block: Amendment: Add D. Kuhr as a sponsor
  • U. Smith: Amendment: Amend type of action to Investigation (not Sense of the Community) and change “referendum” to “investigation”
  • U. Smith: Cornell will not be made a smoke-free campus. The resolution is a formal declaration that the SA is looking at the behavior of students on campus regarding smoking. Two task forces (Student Health and Communications) and the Residential Life Committee will be looking at three different things
    • Programs at different universities
    • Policies at different universities
    • Best method for gathering information
  • J. Rau: Applauds sponsors for keeping an open mind and looking into smoking habits rather than simply saying that smoking is bad. Eager to hear the results of the investigation
  • G. Block: Successful changes in smoking policies in other universities have come from extensive research about smoking behaviors
  • Call to question, seconded
  • N. Raps: Point of information: a resolution can be called to question at any time — do not have to wait for the end of the speakers’ list
  • Vote: 22–0−0
  • Resolution 17 passes

7.  VII. New Business

• None

Meeting adjourned at 6:15 pm

Respectfully submitted,

Chelsea Cheng