(Sam Douglas / Fourth Estate)
The state of Student Gov five weeks into the spring semester
BY SAM DOUGLAS, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Following a whirlwind fall semester, George Mason University’s Undergraduate Representative Body has found their rhythm after the inauguration of Undergraduate Student Body President Jonathan Dubois in late January.
Dubois’ executive team has begun to take shape, with Zoë Oliver in place as vice president for marketing and relations and Emily Mulumba sworn in as vice president for membership development and training at the Jan. 29 meeting.
However, the positions of executive vice president and vice president for outreach remain vacant.
As Gov. Abigail Spangberger’s inauguration has caused a flood of bills in the Va. General Assembly, it has also caused an influx of resolutions in the URB.
The body has passed resolutions in support of House Bills 780, 1312 and 1279 and Senate Bill 494. They are currently on the floor of the Va. General Assembly.
HB780 and SB494 cover the oversight boards of public universities; if passed, they could result in the undergraduate student body president getting a vote at Mason Board of Visitors meetings.
Previously, the undergraduate student body president has just been a non-voting student representative at BOV meetings. Their representative power lies in the fact that they are the only undergraduate Mason student permitted to speak at the meetings.
HB1312 would result in a two-year freeze of undergraduate tuition and mandatory fees at public universities. HB1279 would allow the construction of housing on land owned by places of worship and other tax-exempt nonprofit organizations.
The passage of these resolutions are mostly ceremonial; however, the URB commits to advocating for the bills during Mason Lobbies, an event where student representatives travel to Richmond to lobby state legislators on behalf of causes significant to the student body.
Recent weekly URB meetings have featured lengthy debates — they spent almost an hour at the Feb. 12 meeting deciding whether to commit $1,000 of their budget to restock the Student Involvement office’s complimentary supply of Scantrons.
At the Feb. 19 meeting, discussion centered on what the URB was going to support when lobbying at the state capital. “R. 15: A Resolution to Endorse Legislation to Protect our International and Immigrant Student Communities” was co-endorsed by the Hispanic and Latine Leadership Alliance and passed unanimously.
“All the issues we’ve had from ICE has particularly hit my community,” said Gabriel Muñoz, president of HLLA, who spoke from the gallery in support of the bill.
(Sam Douglas / Fourth Estate)
Another proposed resolution sparked debate. “R. 17: A Resolution to Support Legislation for Public Sector Collective Bargaining” was criticized by some for being voted on without having gone through the committee process.
“This is fundamentally illogical,” Representative Andre Esteves said to the bill’s co-sponsor Griffin Crouch. The two debated animatedly during a recess of the URB meeting.
Crouch maintained that, due to Mason Lobbies drawing nearer, the resolution needed to be passed as soon as possible. Esteves said he had several issues with the bill and that it should go back to the URB’s Government and Community Relations committee for debate.
(Sam Douglas / Fourth Estate)
“There are substantive things that need to be changed,” Esteves said. The motion to send the bill back to committee passed 16-3, with five representatives abstaining.
Due to many members being newly elected to the URB, decorum has been an issue repeatedly brought up by Dubois and Clerk Andrew Boese.
The meeting on Feb.19 began with laminated cheat sheets of “Robert’s Rules of Order” being handed out. “Robert’s Rules of Order” is a 150 year old guide on professional procedure for meetings and governance.
Near the end of the meeting, Dubois reminded the representatives to maintain professionalism and “refrain from emotional outbursts.”
“We are not siblings … In here, we are representatives,” Dubois said.
