Janie Boschma

As a member of the UW-System committee reviewing segregated fee policies, I was very surprised to see The Spectator staff address the issue before the draft was made available to the UW-System campuses. While the premise of its editorial was acceptable, I appreciate the opportunity to clarify issues that arose from it.

The first point I’d like to emphasize is that there is no new policy as of yet; we only have a draft. As of Tuesday, the draft policy is being circulated through the campuses for input from campus leaders and students. Then the committee will reconvene and consider the input from the campuses before sending its final recommendations to the Board of Regents for them to address. I’d also like to take this opportunity to invite all interested students to the Student Senate meeting this coming Monday, Nov. 19, at 6 p.m. in the Tamarack Room to be a part of our discussion on the segregated fee policies draft. The comments will be consolidated with the rest of the campus’ input and sent to the system committee on Tuesday, Nov. 20.

Now I’d like to introduce to you what some of the specific changes are and how they will affect students’ abilities to distribute segregated fees.

There are two main points of contention on the committee and they address whether or not segregated fees are state money and the implications of that and what is the legal relationship between the university and our recognized student organizations.

The first of these is important because it affects students’ abilities to use segregated fees for whatever they see fit. It isn’t a change in policy as much as it is a clarification. But through this clarification we are looking at a policy that would require the university to go through the proper state processes to lease space off-campus for student organizations and to contract for services not provided on campus. This change also reflects the seemingly growing liability the university has over student organizations.

Another significant change within the document is new minimum criteria for the recognition of student organizations that receive segregated fees. All of these issues will be discussed more in depth at the Student Senate meeting Monday.

Another important issue The Spectator editorial raised was the ability of students to distribute segregated fees, stating that it is our only tangible power. Wisconsin State Statute 36.09(5) gives students many rights and responsibilities in the operation of the university. First, we have the primary role in the formulations and review of policies concerning student life, services and interest. Second, we have the responsibility, in consultation with the chancellor, for the allocation of student fees (segregated fees). Third, we have the right to organize ourselves in the manner we see fit to represent students in institutional governance.

All three of these responsibilities are subject to the powers of the Board of Regents, the President of the UW-System, Chancellor Levin-Stankevich and the faculty.

So what does all this mean? It means that thanks to the statute, we have the responsibility and right to participate in the governance of the system and UW-Eau Claire.

Essentially, the system Administration cannot take away our power to distribute segregated fees, participate in policy formation and participate in shared governance because those rights are guaranteed to us. So with that information, I promise that these suggested policy changes do not limit our right to distribute fees, they only clarify the limitations of what we can fund with them. For another bit of assurance, I have had many conversations with Vice Chancellor Soll, who is also a member of the committee, about these proposed changes and we have determined they will have virtually no affect on the way Student Senate allocates segregated fees.

I hope this has helped clarify the issues surrounding segregated fees The Spectator staff brought up in their editorial. If you’re interested in more information, please stop by the Student Senate office in Davies, e-mail me at [email protected] or come to our Senate meeting on Monday. We hope to see you there.

French is Student Senate president and guest columnist for The Spectator.