Tensions ran high Wednesday during the first Associated Students Inc. (ASI) senate meeting of the spring semester.
In the midst of a roundtable debate on whether or not committee applicants for next semester should be required to make themselves available on a specific day and time, senator Jamie San Andres decided to voice her displeasure with the conduct of ASI and its senators.
“The history of ASI, and my experience here as a senator, has demonstrated that ASI executives are employees of administration that take pleasure in being reminded of the marionette positions that they have chosen for themselves,” she said. “As for the knit group of friends and family, which is a clear conflict of interest, who cannot think for themselves, I will not name you for you know who you are.”
Senator San Andres also added that a group of senators are making a point to devise policy without adequate consultation with their fellow senators.
“The reason why I bring this up is because I have rapidly lost faith in this organization,” San Andres said. “To cite the example of the senator expectations policy and the multicultural research that has been going on for less than a week, has demonstrated that ASI executives and their knit group of friends devise policy without the consultation of us, their fellow senators.”
San Andres left the room after her two minute speech.
In an interview with The Collegian after the meeting, senator San Andres said one of her main concerns was the manner in which certain policy research is conducted, particularly the possible elimination of the Multicultural/International general education requirement that she said will adversely affect already underrepresented programs, such as the social sciences and women’s studies.
After San Andres’s departure from the meeting, senator Selena Farnesi addressed the remaining ASI senators, stating that the policies were not yet up for vote.
“It’s obvious that we all have different opinions on this issue, and I think that’s great and [it’s] what being a Senator is about, but since we are not even voting on this issue at this time, we should probably move the discussion along and maybe take the next couple of weeks to talk to the people we represent and come back informed on the issue,” Farnesi said.
Senators also voiced differing opinions about the merits of proposing a policy that will explicitly declare on senate and committee applications that senators must be available during a specific time.
Some senators took the stance of supporting the policy because there had been instances concerning the availability of certain committee members that made it difficult for committees to arrange meetings.
Senator Mathew Todd stated that specified days and times would be convenient for the senators, but may put committee members in a bind.
“Speaking for my college, we have a majority of our labs held from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Wednesdays,” Todd said. “For example, I had to drop a class in order to be here, and these labs are offered maybe once a year, or sometimes once every two years. We’d lose out on a lot of applicants. I understand that leaving the whole week open is too broad, but allowing an entire day will be able to meet people’s needs.”
In response to the senator San Andres, a couple of senators were empathetic to her situation.
In an e-mail interview after the meeting, senator Pedro Ramirez praised San Andres.
“Not many people have the backbone to stand up to a board in which they serve. Her sentiment reveals the sentiment of the student body. Students are frustrated with the way ASI and the administration run the university and that is why it is important to voice your opinions and vote during elections.”
In an e-mail interview after the meeting, senator Farnesi said, “ASI is made up of many unique individuals that bring different perspectives to the table. We value the diversity of the ASI senate and their respective opinions.”
