Editor’s note: Sections of this story have been rearranged for clarity.
The Associated Students of Oregon State University senate held a meeting July 30 with an agenda highlighting discussions on the veto of SB 84.01 that establishes a Campus Cultural Development Senate Committee.
The proposed amendment bill, SB 84.07 was tabled indefinitely, and the senate voted to pass SB 84.01.
The ASOSU Senate meeting addressed the swearing in of new senators and proxies, approval of previous meeting minutes with the current agenda and an open floor for gallery comments. The focal point of the meeting; deliberates on SB 84.01, a bill that was vetoed in favor of passing SB 84.07.
SB 84.01 aims to restructure and develop campus cultural resources for students with disabilities, international students and the SOL LGBTQ+ Multicultural Support Network. The bill is designed to enhance support for marginalized groups through structured leadership and dedicated resources on campus.
The counterproposal of SB 84.07 proposes the creation of a new committee dedicated to enhancing cultural resources and support for marginalized groups on campus.
A repeated concern from some senators and Audrey Schlotter, ASOSU President, was that the policies from SB 84.01, “would fall outside of the bounds of the ASOSU’s hiring and employment authority,” according to the meeting agenda.
However, Addison Rowe, an ASOSU Senator, clarified that there is nothing illegal or outside the scope of ASOSU’s authority in the bill with creating the new student positions to oversee the campus cultural spaces.
In previous Senate meetings, Leah Wright, an ASOSU Senator who co-authored SB 84.07 and supported the veto voiced that she wanted more time and student representation for the bill.
When asked what her contributions to SB 84.07 were, Wright couldn’t pinpoint what she or the other co-author had changed in the proposed amended SB 84.07.
Wright kept reminding senate members that the bill could be amended at any time and should be treated as a “rough draft.”
However, Senator Emerson said that SB 84.01 had already been on the agenda for several meetings and discussed, so putting it off longer is unnecessary.
Members of the gallery also voiced their support for SB 84.01 and the positive implications it would have for students.
An anonymous gallery member spoke about their experience working for SOL and how SB 84.01 has been a labor of student activism and planning.
“I worked at SOL, and I wanted to mention that over time we developed the SOL mission and stated that getting our center is part of our new mission to help our community,” the anonymous gallery member said. “Unfortunately, we heard that’s something that can’t happen.”
Emerson Pearson, ASOSU Senator, also spoke about the role of the senate when representing OSU students and the importance of listening to constituents.
Pearson said the senate should work on legislation to ensure the best outcome for OSU students, stressing the importance of involving students in the decision-making process to ensure a successful outcome.
“I believe, and I want to clarify that I don’t think it’s the student leaders here doing the fear mongering, we (OSU Senate) represent the students, not the administrators who are trying to reach over and be like, ‘Well, we don’t like this, and we don’t want it to happen.’ Pearson said. “We cannot let (OSU administration) scare us with the idea that maybe they won’t follow through.”
ASOSU also voted to revert to Zoom meetings so the gallery can actively participate when called upon to give comments.
