The march, led by Students for Service Learning and open for the entire student body to take part in, will begin in front of The Market at 12:40 p.m., ending at the Bovee University Center 15 minutes later, where the SSL’s President Kevin Richmond will address the participating students. The organization will hand out buttons and is asking students to prepare their own signs and flags.

The march is part of a planned, ongoing series of events which will take place in protest of Proposal 1, which would eliminate the SGA house. SSL will hold a meeting at 8 p.m. Wednesday in the Charles V. Park Library to discuss future plans regarding the proposal. That meeting will also be open for students to join.

According to the organizer of the march, Albion graduate student Chris Hopcraft, the march is being held because of the lack of student representation a unicameral system could potentially cause.

“The proposal would consolidate the voices of over 20,000 students in a small amount of senators” Hopcraft said. “We don’t see this as a plan that represents the student body.”

Despite the groups’ disagreements with the proposal, Hopcraft said the group is open to compromising with the SGA on the proposal.

“We like the idea that we are reforming the Student Government to be more efficient,” Hopcraft said. “And we are open to any proposal that will accurately meet  student needs.”

Richmond, a Romeo senior, said SGA President Vince Cavataio has been eagerly seeking student feedback and has been disappointed in the amount he has received.

“Cavataio is passionate about this issue,” Richmond said. “He is heavily invested within this conversation. He expects the student body to take an active role in it as well, and I don’t believe he has found them to be active enough.”

Other groups have also taken part in supporting the protest. Take Back The Tap President and Walled Lake freshman Mariah Urueta said although she cannot speak for her group as a whole, she personally believes the new proposal will cause a damaging presence of lobbying in SGA.

“The unicameral will make it so RSOs will have to lobby a senator,” Urueta said. “If they don’t get a senator on their side, they won’t have a voice in the unicameral system. That is not a fair position to put RSOs in.”

The Student Environmental Alliance has also spoken against the unicameral system and is planning to have a large presence in the march on Thursday. Saline junior and SEA President Chloe Gleichman said the proposed plan would have major repercussions on the group’s impact on campus.

“This is important to us, because our group introduces a variety of legislation and takes an active part in SGA. We don’t want to lose our ability to do that,” Gleichman said.

The SGA has provided a unicameral system outline online, which displays the most current format of the unicameral proposal.

Mount Clemens sophomore Erica Freckleton practices juggling for the first time while in front of the Juggling and Circus Arts Club booth during RSO night Monday evening at the CMU Events Center. "It was a lot easier than I thought," said Freckleton. "I have absolutely no hand-eye coordination so I'm sure that if I can do it anyone can do it." (Charlotte Bodak/Staff Photographer)

Michelle Shamaly said about 80 registered student organizations participated in the Student Government Association’s second RSO Spotlight event.

The event was held at 7 p.m. Monday in the Events Center.

“This is our second year hosting this event; it used to be run through the Office of Student Life,” Shamaly said.

Last year was a much smaller event held in the Bovee University Center Rotunda and this year the amount of participation has increased significantly, she said.

“Since most of SGA is organized by different representatives of different organizations, we wanted to give them a chance to showcase their organizations and (get) more members,” Shamaly said.

She said this event gave the RSOs experience promoting their organizations and a chance to network with other organizations while building a community.

“I think it is important because not everyone can come to the fall semester MAINstage and it is just a really good way to get your organization out there,” said Mesick sophomore Anelisa Bailey.

Bailey is a member of Spanish Club, which is open to all students.

“Anybody in any Spanish class is able to come to Spanish Club,” she said. “It is a way to practice the language and we put on fun activities.”

Other RSOs present included the Justice Society, based through the criminal justice program, MHTV, CMU’s student-run television station, and Spectrum (formerly the Gay/Straight Alliance), who advocate for the LGBTQ community.

“It is good if there are people that came in for the spring semester and not the fall, so they can come out and see what the RSOs are about,” said Harbor Springs senior Seth Garson.

RSOs that were founded this semester were in attendance as well, including the Juggling and Circus Arts Club.

“The main focus of our RSO is to bring together people with similar interests and help each other get better at our individual disciplines,” said Brighton junior Matthew Peplinski.

As the founder and president of the new organization, Peplinski said he was hoping the event would give them the chance to have people become interested, even if they do not have past experience.

“It is basically about getting together and having fun,” Peplinski said. “One really nice thing about juggling and circus arts is that there is no pressure, because it is not a sport — you do not have to worry about being bad at it.”

During the event, Peplinski and East Lansing freshman Noah Benallack demonstrated and taught students who approached their table juggling and other circus arts.

“It is all about getting better at what you do, finding what you love to do and just having fun,” Peplinski said.

Sparta junior and SGA senator Spencer McKellar said he would like to see the event return every year because RSOs need something similar to MAINstage during the spring semester.

“I feel this is a great avenue to promote all the different things we have to offer on this campus,” McKellar said.

When students start in the fall they feel overwhelmed, but in the spring they have more time to get acclimated, said Detroit junior Laci Bosquez.

“I really enjoy getting to know people that run the clubs and having the opportunity to see what the clubs are showcasing,” Bosquez said.

Mount Pleasant junior and SGA member Sean Kolhoff planned and organized the RSO Spotlight.

“If students have an organization they belong to, it gives them further reasons to want to stay on campus and continue throughout college for all four years,” Kolhoff said.

“We believe this is a great way to provide the same great publicity and PR for our organization that MAINStage provides at the beginning of the fall semester,” said Bryan Shelby, SGA representative for Alpha Phi Omega and Port Huron senior.

SGA’s Growth and Development Committee planned the event, which they described as a “mini-MAINstage” in a news release.

“It is put on to create awareness of all of the RSOs for the students and create an opportunity for people to get involved,” said Jennifer McNairnie, SGA press secretary assistant and Lake Orion junior.

McNairnie said the RSOs would be given an opportunity to recruit and network in a similar way to the much larger fall event.

“This is a great opportunity we have to spread our message of service, leadership and friendship to the rest of campus,” Shelby said.

This event is open to all students.

“It is a great way for RSOs to get exposure that they otherwise would not have,” said Keith Guyot, Sigma Tau Delta president and Flat Rock senior.

SGA Press Secretary and Clinton Township senior Michelle Shamaly said the purpose of the RSO Spotlight is to bring all student organizations together for a great opportunity and for students looking to get involved and reach out to make connections.

“Students can walk around and find out about things that they are interested in instead of RSOs going to find out who might be interested,” Guyot said.

The sudden arrival of the RSOs to voice their dissent against a proposal created largely in response to inactivity and poor attendance by SGA representatives was a bizarre, kind of self-incriminating hypocrisy, but it’s one well-known to many governing bodies.

Their vocal arrival is little different from the normally-stale school board meetings that suddenly explode with participation the minute budget cuts make the agenda, or city council meetings packed with citizens because of a proposed ordinance.

Or the typical college student, apathetic of the political process until an issue comes to the forefront that they become interested in.

Everyone, no matter their varying degrees of interest, deserves an opportunity — a forum — to let their voice be heard. Whether the SGA decides to listen is another story, but a fierce opposition to a proposal should at least be considered.

Toeing the line between mob rule and an oligarchy is a problem which has plagued representative democracies since their first inception. So simply doing away with more than half of campus’ representatives is going to cause some understandable backlash — despite however much representing those representatives actually do.

The problem simply is not that easy to fix.

The self-interest betrayed by the swollen attendance could be damning, but if anything, it reveals something more complicated. If RSOs only show interest in the goings on at SGA when they are facing an existential threat, then how can we expect a unicameral Senate to avoid making self-preservation its primary goal?

It’s all gotten a bit cliquey, really.

How can we, or the E-Board of SGA, say for sure what course is best for student government? Fittingly, the issue will be placed on the general election ballots. Let’s hope students with an interest in the fight remember their voices then.

SGA President Vince Cavataio and Vice President Colleen McNeely answered questions from a small, engaged crowd. The majority of the meeting focused on the everyday activities of their positions.

Shelby Township senior Cavataio described his position as heavily-involved, usually consisting of four to five hours worth of meetings daily, and a countless amount of hours working on research and projects for the student community. He described these projects as the most important part of his job.

“I am very proud to to have accomplished extending library hours last semester,” Cavataio said. “This semester I am working to extend the Student Activity Center open hours to 24 hours a day. I am excited to be making progress in this project as well.”

Other positions featured were vice president, responsible for meeting with committee chairs and the Senate, and coordinates its activities with the president, and also the secretary, who manages the finances of SGA.

Those interested in becoming president will have to attain 350 signatures from the student body, as well as conduct an extensive campaign and take part in a public debate. Campaigning senators will also have to gain 200 student signatures, but their campaign will not be as extensive.

When asked about SGA’s importance, Brighton junior McNeely said an essential part in making positive changes to the university.

“The great thing about being in the SGA is that you have a lot of power to change campus,” McNeely said. “When we have the student body behind us, people listen to us.”

Macomb junior Justin Gawronski, a current senator and one of the attendees at the forum, is running as an unofficial candidate with Alma junior Anna Dvorak.

“I’m excited for SGA’s future,” Gawronski said. “We have the ability to do some great things in the near future.”

Individuals interested  in running for senator, treasurer or president have until Feb. 3 to register. General elections to decide positions will take place March 12-16.

The proposal will be included on the ballot in the general elections, where it would pass with a majority vote. The general elections will be held from March 12-16, and students can vote online at vote.cmich.edu.

The change will effectively make both the legislative and the executive branch smaller.

“Most universities only have a unicameral system.” said SGA Vice President and Brighton junior Colleen McNeely. “We have the largest government of any college in the state.”

McNeely said SGA is not only the largest student government in the state, but disportionately so, being three times larger than the next largest. McNeely said SGA’s size has caused significant problems.

“It would really help to go down in size,” she said. “We don’t have enough people show up to the meetings. We often have too many empty chairs.”

A unicameral system would completely redesign SGA, combining some positions and redefining the roles of others. The senatorial body would be condensed to 15 senators and one senate leader.  Six senators would represent student demographics and the residence halls, and the other eight would represent the student body as a whole.

McNeely said SGA is working to keep the layout as familiar as possible if the proposal passes.

“Most of the committees our members participate in will remain the same,”  McNeely said.

SGA President and Shelby Township senior Vince Cavataio said there are some new issues that come with the proposed change to a unicameral system.

“Although a unicameral system will shrink the government, it will make for a more populated meeting,” Cavataio said. “One of the chief concerns is that voices will be drowned out.”

Cavataio said he believes the benefits of the change would outweigh the negatives.

“It will make for a smaller, more gung-ho group, more able to reach RSOs and make an impact on campus,” he said.

McNeely said she promises meetings will remain open to the student body if the proposal passes.

“Any student will still be able to attend meetings and present legislation” McNeely said . “We will still retain our connection to the community.”

Roommates talking in their dorm room. In August, 2011 Residence Life enacted new rules regarding overnight guests and Welcome Week. The rules were met with a resolution from SGA.

Residence Life implemented significant changes to the overnight guest policy which provoked a resolution from the Student Government Association.

The change in guest policy started with a ban on overnight guests, including other Central Michigan University students, during Welcome Week.

The new protocol required a form to be submitted by students who wanted to host guests once weekday overnight guests were allowed after Aug. 26. The policy requires students to submit a request form that must be signed by all roommates in the room, the resident assistant and the residence hall director 48 hours before the visit.

Under the old policy, non-student guests had to sign in at the front desk and register their vehicles with the CMU Police while other CMU students were allowed entry with a student ID.

This is the first time CMU has implemented either policy, and Joan Schmidt, associate director of Residence Life, said it stems from problems during the 2010-11 school year.

“Last year was just awful — we start so much earlier than other schools,” Schmidt said.

The ban includes those who go to CMU living in another hall or off campus.

She said the new Welcome Week policy was implemented to help students bond with new roommates, instead of old friends from home.

“This is the optimum time for students to get to know their roommates and to start a good academic year,” Schmidt said.

The purpose of the new weekday policy is to encourage students to study and focus on classes.

The weekday overnight guest policy was met with a SGA resolution in oppositon passed Nov. 21.

SGA Sen. Stephanie Jaczkowski introduced and received approval for a resolution opposing the policy.

The Clinton Township senior cited numerous reasons for SGA’s opposition, including that students are basically leasers of the university and should have the right to invite guests as they choose, that students should be allowed to decided their own guest policies in their roommate agreements and that student safety was not listed as one of the reasons for the policy change.

“Last year, a growing issue for students was having people stay in their room night after night,” said Tricia Henry, a Woldt resident assistant and Illinois junior. “The policy is supposed to make dorm rooms easier to study in.”

Sean Kolhoff, an SGA senator and Mount Pleasant junior, said he believes the policy will hurt students going through unique situations and who need the flexibility to stay on campus.

“It would have been impossible for me to make it to all my classes last year if I couldn’t sleep in my friend’s room,” Kolhoff said.

Jaczkowski said SGA’s ultimate goal is the repeal of the guest policy she considers unnecessarily restrictive.

“Now that the resolution has passed, we can start coordinating meetings or other forums with the student body in order to address the issues,” said Colleen McNeely, SGA vice president and Brighton senior.

SGA approved a resolution against the policy Nov. 21, citing it wants students to be able to bypass submitting paperwork to have overnight guests during the week.

The policy, new for the 2011-12 school year, requires students to submit a request form that must be signed by all roommates in the room, the resident assistant and the residence hall director 48 hours before the visit in order for the guest to be allowed.

The policy treats outside visitors and other Central Michigan University students the same. This is different from last year’s Residence Life overnight guest policy that only required guests to check in at the front desk of residence halls.

SGA Sen. Stephanie Jaczkowski introduced and received approval for a resolution opposing the policy.

The Clinton Township senior cited numerous reasons for SGA’s opposition, including that students are basically leasers of the university and should have the right to invite guests as they choose, that students should be allowed to decided their own guest policies in their roommate agreements and that student safety was not listed as one of the reasons for the policy change.

“Last year, a growing issue for students was having people stay in their room night after night,” said Tricia Henry, a Woldt resident assistant and Illinois junior. “The policy is supposed to make dorm rooms easier to study in.”

Sean Kolhoff, an SGA senator and Mount Pleasant sophomore, said he believes the policy will hurt students going through unique situations and who need the flexibility to stay on campus.

“It would have been impossible for me to make it to all my classes last year if I couldn’t sleep in my friend’s room,” Kolhoff said.

Jaczkowski said SGA’s ultimate goal is the repeal of the guest policy she considers unnecessarily restrictive.

“Now that the resolution has passed we can start coordinating meetings or other forums with the student body in order to address the issues,” said Colleen McNeely, SGA vice president and a Brighton junior.

During Tuesday’s A-Senate meeting, a motion was presented requesting Yoder, founding dean of CMED, “provide a written description of any and all changes made to the curriculum for the Medical Doctor Degree since its approval by the senate on Nov. 16, 2010 including any changes to the master course syllabi.”

The motion also requested Yoder send in copies of all master course syllabi related to CMED curriculum so they can be posted on the A-Senate website by Nov. 23.

“There’s no way that I can have this material prepared in the format asked by (the 23rd or even) the 29th,” Yoder said.

Two weeks ago A-Senate voted to halt “all work by, toward, and on behalf of the College of Medicine pertaining to curriculum, non-curricular policies and procedures, and faculty recruitment be suspended until such time as the above concerns have been addressed by and to the satisfaction of the Academic Senate.” But some have said the vote was unconstitutional because not all members were informed about the vote beforehand.

Student Government Association President Vince Cavataio, a Shelby township senior, motioned for the motion to be amended so the material could be given at a later date. A second motion was then requested for the votes to be done electronically. Confusion ensued as the A-Senate attempted to figure out which motion it was voting on.

Eventually, it voted to postpone the original CMED motion by a vote of 68 percent.

Yoder will present on CMED Nov. 29 and also give five presentations on issues that were discussed with the Liaison Committee on Medical Education.

During Provost Gary Shapiro’s report, questions were asked about the self-study done by CMED. In a section regarding, “strengths and challenges,” David Smith, professor of religion and philosophy, asked about the use of the term “egalitarian culture” as a challenge.

“Do we have an egalitarian culture? Yes we do,” Shapiro said. “The question is, what is the proper mix between egalitarian culture and equity? In some areas we’ve overemphasized egalitarian rather than performance-based.”

Suspended student

The incident of the suspended journalism student was also discussed. Political Science Chairman Orlando Perez asked why no name has been released and why the student was not expelled.

Legally, the university does not currently have the right to release the name, Shapiro said. The decision to not expel the student was made by the Office of Student Life. He was asked to email the Central Michigan University community because rumors had been spread regarding the situation, he said.

Shapiro said he has been informed by the authorities that the situation has been peacefully resolved and the community is safe.

“That person went through Student Life, and that was the decision made by the appropriate individuals,” Shapiro said. “I personally have been told it is sufficient, and in that sense, I have to rely upon the people that make that decision.”

Course withdrawals

The course withdrawal process has changed this semester, and continues to undergo improvements.

The new withdrawal system allows students to electronically drop a class without having to discuss the decision with their professors.

Registrar Karen Hutslar outlined issues with the changes.

“Concerns were raised about students lacking communication with faculty members when withdrawing from courses,” she said. “With the changes made to the process, that part was eliminated.”

Course withdrawal is initiated by the student, and the professor is informed after initial paperwork is complete.

“Often when students come into my office, I ask if they’ve spoken to their professors and they haven’t,” Hutslar said. “It used to be a requirement in order to withdraw, but now that it’s not, most students never even have the conversation with their teachers.”

Firstly, President Ross is a remarkable politician.

The way he fielded questions, sometimes answering them, and other times not answering while giving the appearance of answering them. Truly masterful.
Especially when I asked you about how university costs across the country have been going increasingly to bloated administrations and not to faculties, and asked you to assuage my fears this was happening at CMU. I’m sure you answered somebody’s question, sir, but you did not answer mine.

Secondly, I was reminded where the focus of much of the student body is when someone asked him whether or not they’d change the tailgating rules for the future home game against Michigan State University. You have the President of CMU in a room, fielding questions, while your professors fight for a contract and your administrators act dubiously in contract negotiations and the progression of CMED, and you feel you should ask about the tailgating rules for a football game a year from now?

Sigh.

But what struck me the most was the glimmer of truth that is hiding underneath it all.

All you have to do is connect the dots. While discussing Academic Prioritization, President Ross stated, and I quote, “There is a commitment for additional resources” for programs that are given a rating of 1 by the Final Academic Prioritization report.

Now, that’s not hard to understand.

If programs rated 4 and 5 are reduced or eliminated, the money from those programs’ budgets would most likely go to programs rated 1 to 3. However, the reader needs to keep in mind that CMED was given a rating of 1.

Ignoring for a moment the problem with rating a program that has not held one class, a program that has not graduated a single student, has not certified one doctor, and is essentially an unaccredited dream at this point a higher rating than established programs that have graduated hundred, thousands, maybe tens of thousands of students: If money from 4 and 5 ranked programs will be going elsewhere, if there is a “commitment for additional resources” for programs given a rating of 1, how can the administration say no tuition dollars are going to CMED?

This is the claim, I believe, that came out from the recently revealed documents. How can they claim that they are not gutting programs for the benefit of a pet project? President Ross essentially admitted to it.

I’m not against a medical school. I am against a medical school that comes with the price of established programs. I am against giving a pet project that isn’t even accredited priority over or alongside accredited programs graduating students. I am against a medical school that is built upon the corpses of the faculty.

Michael Lonsberry
Holt Alumni
Representative of
“Students for Faculty” RSO