Executive Committee of the Student Body

Minutes from the September 3rd, 2007 Executive Committee Meeting
• President Josh Payne called the meeting to order at 6:37pm.

• Dean Watkins gave a presentation to the EC on campus safety, specifically what the University learned from the report on the Virginia Tech tragedy.

• The Voting Regulations Board discussed the Freshmen Elections with the EC. The EC suggested adding a polling place at Stemmons Plaza (behind the Colonnade), as well as changing the time and increasing the signage for the campaign speeches.

• After these distinguished guests left, Payne officially welcomed the EC back to school.
• Vice President Jordan Campbell announced that four clubs (Onyx, MSA, Fancy Dress and General Admission) overspent their budgets at the end of the year, so the EC is currently operating under a $15,000 deficit.

• Secretary Jane Ledlie discussed the new plans for the EC website, as well as new recording equipment for the EC.

• Payne discussed the introduction of swipe card machines to Huntley Hall.

• Payne informed the EC that Nationals revoked Kappa Sigma’s charter this summer.

• Payne reminded the EC of various important dates, such as the Activities Fair, Convocation and Honor Orientation this coming Wednesday.

• Payne sent the meeting into closed session at 7:35pm.

• Payne reopened the meeting at 9:42pm.

• Payne adjourned the meeting at 9:43pm.

Minutes from the September 17th, 2007 Executive Committee Meeting
(Germany excused, Gardner late)

• President Josh Payne called the meeting to order at 6:37pm.

• Payne welcomed the 1L and Freshmen EC candidates who were observing the meeting. Each candidate introduced him/herself and recounted one “fun fact,” some of which were better than others.

• Payne then introduced President Ruscio, who presented his new plan entitled “Rededication to Teaching and Learning,” which some members of the EC have subtitled “I Love Spring Term.”

• Payne announced that Fall Committee Appointments would be Monday, October 1st.

• Payne reminded the EC of the breakfast with President Ruscio this Thursday at 8:00am.

• Payne also brought up the various Traveller issues that had surfaced in the previous weeks. The EC agreed that these issues would diminish if everyone would remember not to act like idiots when on Traveller.

• Payne followed up on the Huntley Hall issues of the previous meeting. The EC determined that Payne should discuss this issue with the department heads in the C-School.

• Sophomore Representative, John Twomey, discussed his vision for the EC-sponsored Honor Symposium. The EC was overall in favor of this plan but determined that it would be better to hold this during the spring semester when participation would be higher.

• Secretary Jane Ledlie proudly announced the plans for the recording system to be installed within the next few weeks.

• Vice President Jordan Campbell reminded the EC of the four clubs (Onyx, MSA, Fancy Dress and General Admission) who overspent their budgets last year. The EC decided to determine what to do with them at the next meeting.

• The minutes from the September 3rd meeting were approved by the EC.

• Payne reminded the EC that elections for the 1Ls would be this Thursday, with speeches Tuesday night at 6:30pm. The elections for the Freshmen Representative would be the following Monday, with speeches Sunday night at 6:30pm.

• Payne closed the meeting at 7:52pm.

• Payne reopened the meeting at 8:28pm.

• Payne adjourned the meeting at 8:28pm.

Minutes from the September 24th, 2007 Executive Committee Meeting
(Twomey excused, Campbell late)

• President Josh Payne called the meeting to order at 6:33pm.

• Members of University Computing introduced themselves to the Executive Committee and asked for ideas on ways to improve technology at W&L. The EC suggested everything from IT Literacy to lifelong emails to feedback on the new website, as the members of University Computing attentively listened and made a list of everything the EC said. The EC agreed to follow up with Chief Technology Officer, Richard Peterson, with any additional ideas or thoughts it may have after the meeting.

• The four clubs (Onyx, MSA, Fancy Dress and General Admission) that overspent their budgets last year came before the EC to explain the reasons for that oversight.

• Junior Class Representative, John Christopher, reminded the EC of the get-together Friday night.

• Payne reminded the EC of the Committee Appointments Monday, October 1st.

• The EC approved the minutes from the last EC meeting.

• Payne adjourned the meeting into closed session shortly after 8:30pm.

• Payne left the meeting at 8:40pm, leaving Vice President Jordan Campbell in charge.

• Campbell adjourned the meeting into open session at 8:48pm.

• Junior Class Representative, Rich Cleary, asked the EC how the Spectator could become a recognized organization, as he received an email from a member of its staff.

• Campbell adjourned the meeting at 8:49pm.

Minutes from the October 1, 2007 Executive Committee Meeting
(Germany tardiness excused, O’Leary excused)

• President Josh Payne called the meeting to order at 6:00pm.

• The Executive Committee interviewed and selected students for various University Committees.

• Junior Class Representative, Rich Cleary, reported on the recent Campus Community Coalition meeting. Cleary was elated to report that noise is no longer an issue in the country.

• Cleary then reported on the Quality Enhancement Program committee on which he sits. This committee is one aspect of the reaccredidation process for the university and will complete a thorough analysis of every aspect of life at the University. Cleary asked the EC to think of the best ways for the QEP committee to gather information from students throughout this process.

• The members of the organization formally known as W.H.Y. came before the EC to ask for recognition as the newly created organization, A.C.T. (formally Act. Change. Tomorrow). The officers of A.C.T. plan to create awareness of world issues and raise money for that particular area of the world by devoting an entire month to that particular cause.

• The EC approved the minutes from last week’s meeting.

• Payne adjourned the meeting into closed session at 9:03pm.

• Payne adjourned the meeting into open session at 10:11pm.

• Payne adjourned the meeting at 10:12pm.

Minutes from the October 8th, 2007 Executive Committee Meeting
(Adamson and Ram excused)

• President Josh Payne called the meeting to order at 7:07pm.

• Mark Snoddy ’08, the 2007-2008 Owings Fellow, asked the EC for opinions on how best to promote the Honor System to W&L students beyond what is done during the freshman year. Sophomore Class Representative, John Twomey, reiterated his earlier suggestion of an Honor Symposium. Junior Class Representative, Rich Cleary, suggested creating some sort of web tutorial on the Honor System. Other representatives suggested putting a column in one of the newspapers. Vice President Jordan Campbell suggested putting a link to the EC’s website on the W&L homepage (note: EC website is currently under construction – look for its launch by the end of the month!). The overall sentiment from the EC is more should be done to help students better understand the Honor System, but crucial issues, such as the timing of such endeavors, environment in which they are implemented and audience they reach, are important to consider in order to ensure the success of such plans.

• Payne discussed with the EC the idea, per the Head Honor Advocate’s request, of giving the Honor Advocates a specific budget. The EC decided to see an itemized budget request from the Honor Advocates before proceeding.

• Payne reminded members of the EC to sign up for the Center for Academic Integrity Conference if interested.

• Payne informed the EC of the Student Leadership Reception to be held the evening of Monday, October 29th at the Morris House.

• Payne reported to the EC that President Ruscio requested a high level meeting for all of those interested in the classroom and gym access issue discussed at a previous meeting. Campbell, Cleary, Twomey and Freshmen Class Representative, Richard Saum, all expressed interest in attending.

• Payne moved next week’s meeting to Tuesday at 7pm.

• Cleary reported on the progress of the QEP committee as he excitedly proclaimed that it has determined numerous ways effectively to get its message out.

• The EC approved the minutes from last week’s meeting.

• Payne adjourned the meeting into closed session at 7:50pm.

• Payne adjourned the meeting into open session at 8:00pm.

• Payne adjourned the meeting at 8:01pm.

Minutes from the October 16th, 2007 Executive Committee Meeting
(Twomey late; Christopher and Adamson absent)

• President Josh Payne called the meeting to order at 7:06pm.

• Traveller Student Chair, Yinyan Li ’08, gave an update on the Traveller program to the EC. She asked that if any EC member or other student had ideas for improvements, please put them in writing and submit them to the Traveller Committee at liy@wlu.edu.

• Payne reported to the EC on his visit to Woodberry Forest School the day before. Payne, accompanied by Professor Gunn, Owings Fellows Walker Williams ’07 and Mark Snoddy ’08, and Ring-Tum Phi Editor Jacob Geiger, discussed W&L’s Honor System with the high school students. Payne was impressed with the WFS students and had only positive things to say about the experience.

• Payne told the EC about an email he received from Professor Pleva, who stated that many of his students don’t actually know what the pledge says. This surprised many of the EC members, who believed the pledge was posted all over the classroom buildings. Payne asked the EC to investigate this next week to see if there are classrooms that needed pledge signs.

• Payne reported on his conversations with the Admissions Webmaster regarding the official explanation of the Honor System on the Admissions Website. Payne asked the EC to give suggestions as to what the website should actually say, in order to most efficiently clear up this matter.

• Payne reminded the EC of the Classroom and Gym Access issue. He appointed Vice President Jordan Campbell the chair of this matter. Junior Representative Rich Cleary asked to remove his name from this matter, and Senior Representative Smith Gardner recanted a personal story from Fall Break when he was prohibited from using one of the new Holekamp Hall rooms because he was not a member of a group.

• Payne adjourned the meeting into closed session at 7:45pm.

• Payne reopened the meeting at 7:54pm.

• The EC approved the minutes from last week’s meeting.

• Payne discussed his upcoming meeting with the Board of Trustees and requested suggestions from the EC on topics to discuss. The EC discussed the importance of proper law school representation at the meeting, particularly with the proposed changes to the law school curriculum. The EC also discussed the potential spring term changes and brainstormed on the best way to get students to understand the current spring term debate.

• Payne adjourned the meeting at 8:30 pm.

Minutes from the October 24th, 2007 Executive Committee Meeting
• President Josh Payne called the meeting to order at 6:52pm.

• Payne adjourned the meeting into closed session at 6:52pm.

• Payne reopened the meeting at 7:31pm.

• Payne informed the EC that the date for the Student Leadership Reception was changed to its official date of Tuesday, November 6th at 6:00pm in the Morris House. This is a great opportunity for members of the EC and the Student Judicial Council to interact with faculty over a plethora of appetizers and non-alcoholic beverages.

• Payne set next week’s meeting for Monday, October 29th at 6:00pm, in order to accommodate both the “Ruscio Forum” and the Contact Speaker.

• Payne revisited the “Pledge in the Classroom” issue from last week’s meeting and assigned EC members to investigate the presence of a pledge in all of the classrooms around campus. EC members agreed to investigate their assigned buildings and report back at the next meeting.

• Vice President Jordan Campbell reported on the status of “Sub-committee: ACCESS” regarding students’ ability to access classrooms after hours. Campbell reported his progress regarding a meeting in the next week with Dean Straughan, Dean Knapp and Coach Hutchinson.

• Junior Class Represenative Rich Cleary announced he was not wearing a belt.

• Payne adjourned the meeting into closed session at 7:45pm.

• Payne reopened the meeting at 9:10pm.

• Secretary Jane Ledlie, Senior Class Representative Smith Gardner, and Sophomore Class Representative John Twomey (hereinafter referred to as “The Twomey Commission”) presented the EC with their proposal on revamping Traveller. The Twomey Commission wants to split the current route into two different lines: one which circulates between the Quad, Sorority Houses, Fraternity Houses and Country Houses (hereinafter referred to as “The Washington Line”) and another line which covers the Quad, Woods Creek, Law School, Cabins, Borden Commons, Salerno’s and Main Street (hereinafter referred to as “The Lee Line”). The Twomey Commission’s purpose is to ease the demands of Traveller Dispatch by more efficiently transporting the majority of W&L students via Traveller Express. However, Traveller Express, in its current form, simply takes too long to transport students where they want to go. The EC overwhelmingly endorsed the Twomey Commission’s efforts and encouraged the members of the commission to do whatever they need to do to make this happen.

• The members of the EC approved the minutes from the last meeting.

• Payne asked the EC if anyone wanted to host a gathering for Parents’ Weekend. Cleary said he would ask permission from his housemates, but the outlook was not promising.

• Payne reminded the EC of the Campus Community Coalition meeting this Sunday from 4:00-6:00pm.

• Payne adjourned the meeting at 9:41pm.

Minutes from the October 29th, 2007 Executive Committee Hearing
(Adamson and Christopher late)

• President Josh Payne called the meeting to order at 6:03pm.

• Payne adjourned the meeting into closed session at 6:04pm.

• Payne reopened the meeting at 6:52pm.

• Payne asked EC members for feedback on their classroom pledge posting search. Those who had not completed the assignment agreed to do so by the next meeting.

• Payne informed the Twomey Commission (a.k.a., the Traveller Subcommittee) that any Traveller fee increase proposal needed to happen as soon as possible.

• Vice President Jordan Campbell discussed times for the Classroom Access Subcommittee to meet and asked members of the committee how exactly to use the “busy” scheduling feature of Groupwise. Members of the committee enthusiastically agreed to teach him.

• Campbell then reported to the EC on a new student organization, the Audio Production Club, seeking recognition, which the EC enthusiastically supported.

• The members of the EC approved the minutes from the last meeting.

• Payne adjourned the meeting at 7:04pm.

Minutes from the November 5th, 2007 Executive Committee Meeting
(Twomey tardiness excused; Campbell absent)

• President Josh Payne called the meeting to order at 6:39pm.

• The EC decided to move its weekly meeting time to 7:00pm.

• Payne asked members of the EC to please tell Secretary Jane Ledlie by noon the next day which classrooms still needed copies of the Honor Pledge.

• Payne told the EC on behalf of Vice President Jordan Campbell that the Classroom Access Subcommittee would be meeting Thursday, November 8th at 1:00pm.

• Payne also reported that the issue with the Admissions website’s description of the Honor System was now fixed, and the website now contained a more accurate depiction of the system.

• Payne reminded the EC that the breakfast with President Ruscio would be Monday, December 3rd at 8:00am at the Lee House.

• Ledlie announced to the EC that as of Wednesday, November 7th, the EC would have a new recording system.

• Payne told the EC about Owings Fellow Mark Snoddy’s ideas to have student and alumni quotes on the Honor System somewhere on the W&L website. Ledlie suggested putting it on the new EC website.

• Payne told the Traveller Subcommittee (a.k.a. “The Twomey Commission”) to finalize its proposal in time for the EC to vote on it and present it to the Traveller Committee at the next meeting.

• Payne adjourned the meeting into closed session at 6:59pm.

• Payne reopened the meeting at 7:02pm.

• Sophomore Representative Denis O’Leary reported that he was in close contact with members of Onyx and MSA to help them better understand their budgets.

• The EC approved the minutes from the last meeting.

• Payne adjourned the meeting at 7:06pm.

Minutes from the November 12th, 2007 Executive Committee Meeting
(Campbell excused; Christopher and Cleary early departure excused; Gardner tardiness excused; Adamson early departure)

• President Josh Payne called the meeting to order at 7:00pm.

• Payne welcomed members of the Traveller Steering Committee (TSC) and gave the floor to Sophomore Class Representative John Twomey, who explained the EC’s Traveller proposal to the TSC. The TSC asked a few questions and then said they would meet with its entire committee to discuss the proposal.

• The EC approved the minutes from the last meeting.

• Payne reported on Vice President Jordan Campbell’s impressions of the Classroom Subcommittee’s meeting with Dean Straughan, Dean Knapp and Coach Hutchinson. Dean Straughan agreed to talk to the C-School faculty about opening up classrooms to students after hours. Dean Knapp and Coach Hutchinson also said they would look into opening up both the college classrooms and the gym more than they currently are.

• Payne reported on Jason Rodocker’s inquiry regarding the EC’s policy on funding organizations during the gap between the spring budget allocations and the winter budget allocations. The EC determined that it would consider funding organizations that had an emergency and unforeseen monetary need on a case-by-case basis.

• Payne adjourned the meeting into closed session at 7:45pm.

• Payne reopened the meeting at 8:54pm.

• The EC agreed to keep next year’s Student Activity Fee at its current rate of $225 per student.

• Payne reminded the EC of the important dates remaining this semester: November 26th and December 3rd at 7:00pm are the last two regular meetings and the final breakfast with President Ruscio is December 3rd at 8:00am.

• Payne adjourned the meeting at 9:05pm.