The student senate considered a resolution regarding court procedure for the student supreme court Wednesday that will be voted on next week, as well as unanimously approved all three items of old business on the agenda.

The first item included a $100 line-item transfer to provide payment for the student government Web master who has yet to be hired. The funds, approved by the apportionment board, will comprise the position’s paycheck for the remainder of the semester to serve as an incentive for keeping the student government Web site up-to-date.

Jarrod Scherle, vice president for business affairs, said the allocation will be put to good use.

“We live in a very electronic age, and our Web site is in bad condition,” Scherle said.

The student senate also approved a correction to a non-employee travel resolution passed at the Feb. 18 apportionment board meeting. A total of $636.99 was transferred in the effort to satisfy revised state stipulations for travel to off-campus events.

Prior to voting, Eric Wilber, the student executive vice president and author of the resolution, expressed a need to amend the correction as two line item amounts were mistakenly switched.

The resolution was amended to flip-flop the amounts listed under in-state travel, which correctly totals $132.86, with those for travel employee in-state, totaling $503.13.

The final item of old business regarded approving the Student Teacher Interaction Program, led by Scott Lambert, vice president for academic affairs.

“I’ve been working on this since the beginning of the semester,” Lambert said. “It really means a lot to teachers when they get a personal award from students.”

Following the unanimous approval of all three resolutions, members of the senate considered a resolution that established procedural guidelines for the student supreme court, which were provided by justices in attendance.

Members will vote on approving the guidelines at Wednesday’s meeting.

If approved, the resolution will officially recognize the required actions that justices must take while operating the court, including proper procedure for extending arguments and resuming hearings at later times as deemed necessary by the justices.

Wilber, who co-authored the resolution, defended it as an opportunity for the student supreme court to maintain organization.

“The [executive] board has its own rules and the senate has its bylaws, but the student supreme court doesn’t have anything except what’s in their portion of the Constitution,” Wilber said.

“This is a great way for the student supreme court to get its ducks in a row. It sets out how they work.”

Discussion pertaining to the procedures will resume Wednesday.

In the meantime, members of the senate will present the 2010-2011 student government budget to the apportionment board at 7 p.m. today.

Scherle, who will lead the meeting, said the budget underwent cuts in the process of review.

“We took good cuts out, in my opinion,” Scherle said. “We should be lean but healthy next year.”

In addition, Student Body President Michelle Murphy will present the 2010-2011 Panther Nation budget to the apportionment board for approval. The board will also vote on its own budget.

In other news:

Petitions to run for student senate seats will be available Monday in the Student Activities Center.

Gary Reed, director of facilities, planning and management, will present the progress of the Honeywell construction across campus during audience participation at next Wednesday’s student government meeting.

Student government will host an open forum at their March 31 meeting.

Erica Whelan can be reached at 581-7942 or elwhelan@eiu.edu

Isaac Sandidge, speaker of the senate, talks at Wednesday’s meeting in the Arcola/Tuscola Room of the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union. (Megan Mathy / The Daily Eastern News)

(more…)