Proposed amendments would create student senate, role of Secretary, yearly charter review; transition to ranked choice voting, mandate accessibility training
Oct. 18 — Members of the Student Advocacy Board have been exploring potential amendments to the SAB charter over the past month, with changes both big and small.
Race & Ethnicity Representative, Cherish McNeil, F21, proposed a yearly charter review committee, which would involve several non-SAB students and produce proposed amendments to the charter.
Treasurer Raymond Kasei, F23, proposed adding a mission statement to the charter to guide the SAB’s actions.
Affinity Group Representative Kenine Dieuveuil, F21’s proposals focused on accessibility, suggesting mandated accessibility training for all SAB members and accessibility audits for SAB events.
Queer Representative Blaise Paine, F23, proposed holding SAB elections using ranked-choice voting and creating the role of SAB Secretary, which would be in charge of running meetings and assembling agendas, tasks that have so far been conducted by Communications and Marketing Manager, Ceonni Dunn, F22.
But the most dramatic proposals come from Transfer Student Representative, Libby Harrity, F23. Harrity’s proposals would create a Student Senate as a legislative branch to the student government, as well as a judicial branch called the Peer Justice Panel, a name suggested by Representative McNeil.
As initially proposed by Harrity, the Student Senate would be a legislative branch to the student government, where-in every Hampshire College student is a voting member, capable of introducing motions and voting on them with an equal voice. The present SAB would then become the executive branch, tasked with enacting the will of the student senate. Notably, the student body would have the power to impeach SAB members.
The Peer Justice Panel would be a judicial branch, tasked with settling disputes regarding violations of the SAB charter, statutes, or other regulation; settling disputes over the allocation of SAF funds; hear impeachment hearings of SAB members; and ensure the smooth operation of student-body elections. Additionally, it would hear disputes between students, which could involve subsuming part or all of the current functions of the Community Standards Review Board.
These proposals draw from the constitution of the New College Student Alliance, the student government of the New College of Florida, a similar alternative liberal arts college. Harrity transferred to Hampshire from New College, where they were the Senate President, last fall, along with 34 others after it was taken over by right-wing extremists.
While Harrity’s particular amendments have not yet been presented at an SAB Meeting due to the SAB taking a recess for October break, Harrity introduced the idea of integrating parts of the NCSA’s constitution into Hampshire’s student government several weeks ago, and the idea was met with significant interest, as well as some apprehension.
For any of these changes to be made to the charter, the SAB will first have to develop specific amendments to enact the changes, and then each amendment would have pass a 2/3rds majority vote inside the SAB. Once passed, the amendment would then be presented to the student body, who can ratify it with a 2/3rds majority of voters.
Discussions about the charter are on-going, and students are invited to attend SAB meetings every Tuesday at 7pm in Kern 108.
DISCLOSURE: The author of this article is the Queer Representative on the Student Advocacy Board, and is involved in developing many of the amendments discussed.
