During public comments, Forest inquired about election outreach, which the election commissioner is handling (though we recently had to fire a new one since the other left unexpectedly).
Julie Garver (garverj@evergreen.edu) and Steve Trotter (trotters@evergreen.edu) spoke on the budget and tuition concerns for Evergreen, highlighting proposed increases in resident undergraduate tuition by more than 6% over the next biennium (4% next year and 2-3% in 2014-15).
They explained that currently 70% of Evergreen’s operating budget comes from tuition—with 30% coming from the state—and while Evergreen is not receiving sufficient support on the public level, tuition increases are a necessity just to keep the lights on. They also mentioned that the Washington State Need Grant will continue to offset tuition for those who qualify but there is nothing being done at the moment for those eligible but un-served.
Due to the dissonance between scheduling at the academic versus the legislative level, a lot of things are being “held hostage,” like fees and scholarships for students as well as salaries for faculty and staff—especially for faculty who have not seen a pay rise since the recession. In these complex and uncertain times, Evergreen’s financial team is working hard to maintain the college and plan for the future. Julie and Steve are desperately trying to reach out to students to make sure everyone has a clear picture.
For more information: Email them! And also visit this website:
E-Mail Steve: trotters@evergreen.edu
Website: http://www.evergreen.edu/president/budget/home.htm
Julie: garverj@evergreen.edu
Website: http://www.evergreen.edu/president/govrelations/home.htm
And, if you post you could also add our institutional research website where there is an enormous amount of information about the college
http://www.evergreen.edu/institutionalresearch/
Jonathan presented an original idea to put on a volleyball event in a couple weeks, with the CRC, and funded by the GO. The event would be hosted on Red Square or the field with outdoor volleyball (size depending on number of available nets).
Representative Zeiger’s event had very poor turnout of only 2 non-GSU representatives, a function partly of limited timing and also of lack of GSU turnout despite ample marketing. Future talks will include Larry Mosqueda on the evolution of El Salvadorian politics on May 30th. Seb and Natalie will make posters for Larry Mosqueda event; Natalie to put together the board on Monday morning.
Jasmine did research on gender-neutral bathrooms and found that several colleges and universities have created gender-neutral bathrooms. Some like Washington State University Vancouver and Green River Community College in Auburn hold “Gender-Neutral Bathroom Week” when many of the bathrooms on campus become gender neutral to raise awareness. More info: http://theolympiareport.com/washington-campuses-mark-gender-neutral-bathroom-week/
Jasmine found that the Washington Administrative Code (WAC) does not permit multiple-occupancy gender-neutral bathrooms, however flexibility from the local facilities director can bend the law—exemplified by the HCC. The next step for us is to try to figure out more about colleges, especially public, that have implemented gender-neutral bathroom initiatives to get ideas and connect with more allies. Ryan B will talk to T-REX about our continuing efforts which will include writing letters telling students’ stories and giving them a way to voice their opinions. Letters should be addressed to the Geoduck Student Union or to whom it may concern. Jasmine and Stefan will work on contacting other public colleges and universities to gather information.
DID YOU KNOW: The single-occupancy bathrooms in Seminar II were built as part of a gender-neutral initiative! Now we’re working to build upon these steps to create a safer and more cohesive campus.
Taco Truck Meeting this Monday: Donald and Hesham to attend. Taco truck management has been a lot more reluctant than anticipated. If successful, we are shooting for the weekend of week 9 to have trail run. Tyler asked for help designing a survey of student who come out to the Taco Truck, and also for advertising pending the agreement
The GSU refined the ballot language for the Wash-PIRG initiative and approved it—the last ballot measure (10 FOR, 0 AGAINST, 0 ABSTAINED)
According to House Bill 1736, Section 4, recently passed by the Washington legislature,
An advisory committee will be formed by the GSU for the purpose of “advising and assisting the administration…on issues that directly affect students’ ability to access and succeed in their educational programs,” like the annual budget, fee levels, financial aid, enrollment, etc.
For full description: http://apps.leg.wa.gov/documents/billdocs/2013-14/Pdf/Bills/House%20Passed%20Legislature/1736.PL.pdf
Doug, Jonathan, and Ryan B are interested in forming said committee.