v  Quarum: 23

1. II. Old Business, Speaker-Elect Landis
2. a. Open Floor for Vanderbilt Student Body

v  Students raise concerns or comment on issues that they would like addressed by the student government

1. III. Presentation of Resolutions
2. a. Resolution S:12-13-13: 2013-2014 Chief of Staff Appointment

v  Proposed by Isaac Escamilla, Lucie Calderon, Josh Landis

v  Passed

1. b. Resolution S:12-13-14: Recognition of the Vanderbilt Football Program

v  Inviting Coach Franklin to turnover

v  Officially recognize success

v  Print and frame and present to Franklin

v  Passed

1. c. Resolution S: 12-13-15: Recognition of Dean Bergquist

v  Passed

1. d. Resolution S:12-13-16: Recognition of Jason Jakubowski

v  Moving to Niagra University

v  Passed

1. IV. New Business, Speaker-Elect Landis
2. a. Budget Update – Treasurer Kevin Schuler

v  Co-Sponsorships: Café con leche, ASBenefit, Quidditch, Best Buddies, Blood and Water, Original Cast, etc.

v  Committee Balances

v  Programming

1. Kissam and Alumni: 0 spent
2. b. CoSponsorship

v  All money goes to MLC InVUsion

v  Did give co-soponsorship grant to Original Cast

1. c. Upcoming VSG Events – Speaker-Elect Landis

v  College Council Voting: March 27^th-28^th

1. Ends 3/28 at noon

v  Appointed Position Applications: March 29^th

v  Turnover Event: April 10^th, SLC

v  VSG Dundies: April 11^th, 6/7 pm, TBD

1. V. Adjourn, Speaker-Elect Landis

On Tuesday, March 26th, Academic Senators Nathan Kallison and Zach Dubrof present a dinner discussion about the topic of love with Professor John Lachs. With his background and expertise in human nature and philosophy of the mind this should be a fun and thought-provoking discussion on all the different facets and aspects of love. Dinner will be served from Coco’s Italian Market, starting at 6:30 and running until 8 pm in Sarratt. Professor Lachs has a Ph.D. in Philosophy from Yale and is extremely well liked on Vanderbilt’s campus, where he has been a professor since 1967.

v  Students raise concerns or comment on issues that they would like addressed by the student government

1. III. Presentation of Resolutions
2. a. Resolution S:12-13-12: Regarding Publication of Expenditures

-       Technical Questions: None

-       Debate: Previous Question moved and seconded.

-       Passed: Yes

1. IV. New Business, Speaker Neely
2. a. Upcoming VSG Events – Speaker Neely

v  VSG Presidential Primaries – Thursday @ 8 AM – Friday @ Noon – Election booths tomorrow will be in the Pi/Leaf New Rand          lounge area from 10 am – 2 pm.

v  Friday, March 22^nd there will be an interest meeting for students running for College Council Presidents.  Campaigning and elections will be held the following week.

v  YAT Elections – All this Week through Friday

v  - Juniors and Seniors are eligible to vote for this position.  Please consider supporting David Head.

v  VSG Presents Les Miserables – March 15th^th @ 7 and 10 PM in Sarratt Cinema

v  Speaker Elections – March 20^th @ 8 PM in SLC Board of Trust Room (Names must be submitted to me by Sunday @ 8 PM)

v  -Interested members should contact Keith about the elections process.

1. V. Adjourn and Thanks, Speaker Neely

v  Students raise concerns or comment on issues that they would like addressed by the student government

1. III. Presentation of Resolutions
2. a. Resolution S:12-13-12: Regarding Publication of Expenditures

-       Technical Questions: None

-       Debate: Previous Question moved and seconded.

-       Passed: Yes

1. IV. New Business, Speaker Neely
2. a. Upcoming VSG Events – Speaker Neely

v  VSG Presidential Primaries – Thursday @ 8 AM – Friday @ Noon – Election booths tomorrow will be in the Pi/Leaf New Rand          lounge area from 10 am – 2 pm.

v  Friday, March 22^nd there will be an interest meeting for students running for College Council Presidents.  Campaigning and elections will be held the following week.

v  YAT Elections – All this Week through Friday

v  - Juniors and Seniors are eligible to vote for this position.  Please consider supporting David Head.

v  VSG Presents Les Miserables – March 15th^th @ 7 and 10 PM in Sarratt Cinema

v  Speaker Elections – March 20^th @ 8 PM in SLC Board of Trust Room (Names must be submitted to me by Sunday @ 8 PM)

v  -Interested members should contact Keith about the elections process.

1. V. Adjourn and Thanks, Speaker Neely

1. I. Welcome
2. a. Call to Order, Speaker Neely
3. b. Roll Call, Secretary Chandler Bair
   1. II. Old Business, Speaker Neely
   2. a. Open Floor for Vanderbilt Student Body

v  Students raise concerns or comment on issues that they would like addressed by the student government

v  Sylvia Precht-Rodriguez came to speak about Staff and Faculty Appreciation Day next Thursday.

1. III. Presentation of Resolutions
2. a. Resolution S: 12-13-11: Adoption of the Revised Statutes

v  Attorney General Pruitt presented the resolution. 

v  Technical Questions

1. 1. Which set of statutes is updated?
   1. a. A: Statutes on the website have not been updated because this resolution has not been passed.
   2. 2. Our statutes do not reflect similar content regarding the Director of Programming position.
      1. a. A: We did not have changes for resolutions from last year and so the changes we made on the pdfs emailed to everyone now reflect these resolutions.

v  Debate: Move to previous question.  Direct to roll call vote.

v  Resolution passed: Yes.

1. IV. New Business, Speaker Neely
2. a. Budget Update – Kevin Schuler

v  Treasurer Schuler gave an itemized budget update to the Senate.  If you have any questions regarding the budget, expenditures for a particular area/event please do not hesitate to contact Kevin.m.schuler@vanderbilt.edu with your specific questions, requests, and/or concerns. 

1. b. Upcoming VSG Events – Speaker Neely

v  Campus Talk on Tailgating – Tonight @ 8 PM

v  Presidential Declaration of Candidacy Meeting – February 24^th @ 7 PM in Sarratt 325

v  Staff Appreciation Day – Thursday, February 28th

v  Speaker Elections – March 20^th @ 7 PM in SLC Board of Trust

1. V. Adjourn, Speaker Neely

African Student Union cordially invites you to

HARAMBEE: MODERN FAMILY

Come on out and see what happens when Auntie Florence comes to town!!

Wednesday, February 20 in the Student Life Center Ballrooms

Dinner at 6PM, Show at 7PM

**Tickets are NOW ON SALE IN SARRATT BOX OFFICE–$10 on the card! **

African Student Union is an organization that strives to promote the awareness of African culture throughout the Vanderbilt community. This year’s show tries to bridge the gap between African culture and other cultures world-wide through dances and performances such as Afro-Bollywood Fusion dance and Japanese Taiko drumming, just to name a couple of our wonderful performances.

Harambee means “all pull together” or “working together for a common purpose” in Swahili. Our event strives to showcase the various components of African culture (food, music, fashion, dance) while raising money towards a cause that benefits African countries.
This year, a majority of our ticket sales will be donated to Vanderbilt Blood:Water Mission, a non-profit that works closely with Nashville-based Blood:Water Mission International to put on grassroots campaigns to raise awareness and funds for water and HIV/AIDS crises in sub-Saharan Africa.

Join ASU for an evening of food, laughter, music, fashion, and great performances as we celebrate African culture.

Facebook Event and Anchor Link Event

Be sure to invite ALL of your friends!!!!!!!

1. I. Welcome
2. a. Call to Order, Speaker Neely
3. b. Roll Call, Secretary Chandler Bair
4. c. Staff Appreciation Video, Sylvia Precht-Rodriguez and Scott Head
5. d. Guest Speaker, Dean Connie Dowell, Vanderbilt University Libraries

v  Dean Dowell came to Vanderbilt Student Government’s Senate session to speak about the library system and exciting new changes to the current libraries.  Feel free to email Dean Dowell with any comments, questions, or concerns regarding the Vanderbilt University Libraries.

1. II. Old Business, Speaker Neely
2. a. Open Floor for Vanderbilt Student Body

v  Students raise concerns or comment on issues that they would like addressed by the student government

v  David Head, SPC Chair, came to speak to the Senate regarding the history of the Co-Sponsorship of the Month program. 

1. III. Presentation of Resolutions
2. a. Resolution S:12-13-08: Regarding Previous Voting Records

v  Technical Questions?

1. 1. How will the demographic information be provided?
2. 2. Will the Anchor Link data be provided in a timeline format?
   1. a. Answer: We would provide the information in the format that Anchor Link currently uses.
   2. 3. Would this responsibility fall under the Election Commission?
      1. a. Answer: It would fall under the Attorney General’s responsibilities.
      2. 4. Can Anchor Link actually publish this information?
         1. a. Answer: Yes, Anchor Link can provide this data, as it is always collected.  We just want to publish the data to make that information available.
         2. 5. Did you speak with an Anchor Link administrator about this initiative?
            1. a. Answer: We spoke to Lori generally regarding this resolution.  While she did not have all of the answers, we have added to the resolution a point of clarification regarding keeping voters’ information confidential.

v  General Debate:

1. 1. Speaker Neely: Some of the information you are requesting, in particular, the gender breakdown, is actually impossible for us to give, due to limitations of the anchor link system and existing privacy issues.  Anchor Link can provide data for schools and residential areas.
2. 2. Since we are dealing with what can and cannot be released, Landis believes we should have specific language in this bill.  If the wording was tightened and more specific, it will help us in increasing transparency.
3. 3. Clayton: In order to get the data that we want, the ballot would have to be built completely differently.  If you are wanting information on all of these different things, we would have to build the ballot completely differently, and I am not sure if we can do that.
4. 4. Senator McKittrick: Motion to Table

1. b. Resolution S:12-13-09: Regarding Co-Sponsorships of the Month

v  Technical Questions

1. 1. Do we have enough time to do this with two-senate sessions/week?
   1. a. Answer: I think we would with the due date of the CSOMS.  I think we need to have a say in what is receiving funding.

2. How would this debate work?

a. We would make sure we came to clear decisions during our time debating.

3. How would we distribute applications?

a. We would give the applications to the Senators to look over and to develop opinions about to bring to discussion and debate.

4. When we vote on the bills, would we vote one at a time or do you only get one vote per night?

a. You will get one vote/night.

5. Would these applications that people put a lot of time into become public to everyone, even those who do not receive funding?

a. Yes, it is important to try to improve transparency in VSG.

Bill is tabled by an acclamation of AYE.

Resolution S: 12-13-10

Mark Cherry: Our bill takes the excellent aspects of Escamilla’s and

Technical Questions:

Q: In the statute, is the organization you are referring to Exec?

A: No, it refers to the entire VSG Organization.

Q: Can’t we just move the date up so that the Senate can always vote on it?

A: No, it is better to have the date on a consistent way.  It would hurt our smaller organizations.

Q: If the executive board to disagree, does the Senate just lose any power?

A: No, since the exec board has the Speaker of the Senate, they are there to voice the opinions of the Senate.

Q: I have some confusion with the statutes (Landis).  Is it constitutional for the Senate to now vote to allocate this money?

A: That is a question I cannot answer.  The Attorney General would need to answer that.

Q: Are you aware of any time when one area of the organization has ever been involved with the allocation of one of those section’s budgets?

A: That would be highly irregular.

We provide different areas of VSG funding to balance the powers.

Q: How would these selections of co sponsorships go?

A: We would tell you why we selected the CSOM and answer any questions.

Q: What do you mean by feedback?  How does that change the selection process?

A: We would listen to your feedback and convey it to other exec members, and that would influence our decision.

Debate?

Tabled?

Open Debate?

Comments must be under 90 seconds.  We are debating on both bills.  The presenters of the bills will be noticed.

Senator Brennan: David Head came to speak to us and the SPC may be an excellent place for an idea like this to originate from.  If the Exec board and Senate were to disagree, it would be unfortunate for no money to be awarded.

Senator Owen: It is important to note that the Senate will be just affirming Exec’s choice over and over.  However, we might not even have a say at all.

Senator Werner: We need to have a checks and balances system for Senate and Exec.

Senator Landis: Transparency is a positive movement.  The second bill, by putting out the slide presentations of all of the CSOMs, gives the Senators more power for those who care enough about it to do something.

Senator Floyd: Isaac and Tanner said the information would be available before the vote.  SPC may need to look at this; however, they have been completely inactive this year.  Having a Senate vote will make it fairer.

Senator McKittrick: A system where we are allowed to put our input can give us our feedback to exec.  It becomes a fight between exec and senate when we have to vote on it too.

Senator Escamilla: What Tanner and I are trying to get across is that if you want to analyze every application you can, but it is still appropriate for us to confirm the decision of the executive board.  We need checks and balances to make sure exec are representative of our student body.

Senator Brennan: Keith is our direct representative on the Exec board.  The previous Senate elected him and he will represent us well in Exec.

Senator Bayles: We were elected to be representatives.  The Exec board has experience to make these decisions.  We are making a big deal about transparency when the bill has transparency.

Senator Werner: The Senate should have a check and balance of power with the Exec board.

Vice President Cherry: Expediency is very important in selecting CSOMs.  Our bill is a good balance between expediency and representation.

Senator Landis: Floyd à we can only vote on the bill as is written.  We are confusing transparency and checks.  He is for transparency, but putting in additional checks slows down out process.  By coming to the meeting, you could voice your concerns.

Senator Floyd: This will not slow down much.  There is rarely going to be disagreement.  There is a difference between bringing feedback and having a vote.

Senator McKittrick: I don’t see how if our feedback was ignored that would cause a problem.  I believe our voices will be heard.

Vice President Cherry:  The checks will rarely be used if the Senate would really disagree with what exec has done.

Senator Owen: I respectfully disagree with VP Cherry.  We are not a malicious Senate but we want to see all of the applications and have all applications available to Senate.  We could hold more regular meetings.

Senator Owen: We need the vote.  We will be presented with a lot of information and we will need a check with all of that information coming to light.

Speaker Neely: Exec opposes this because at the end of the day that there are some decisions require expediency.  When we talk about voting, these Senate sessions are set in stone.  We are in a unicameral legislature for the reason of having standard committee meetings.  We have biweekly senate for the committees to actually be useful and bring ideas to senate sessions.  If you are concerned with having a voice, the second proposed bill is able to voice this.  I want to empower the Senate and I support this second CSOM bill because it is the best move forward for the organization.  We have our minds made up and we know how we feel.

Exec bill is forwarded now.

Second.

The bill passes.

Resolution 12-13-09: Tabled.

1. IV. New Business, Speaker Neely
2. a. Senator Owen gave an update on the SEC Student Government Exchange
3. b. Upcoming VSG Events – Speaker Neely

v  SPC Committee Meeting – February 24^th @ 8 PM in Rand 303

v  Next Session – February 20^th @ 7 PM in SLC BOT

1. V. Adjourn, Speaker Neely

I. Welcome

1. a. Call to Order, Speaker Neely
2. b. Roll Call, Deputy Chief of Staff Tanner Floyd
   1. II. Old Business, Speaker Neely
   2. a. Open Floor for Vanderbilt Student Body

v  Students raise concerns or comment on issues that they would like addressed by the student government

-Matt Brennan spoke about dinner discussion w/ Professor Alexander to be hosted on 1/30

1. III. Presentation of Resolutions
2. a. Resolution S:12-13-06: Instituting a Guest Pass Program for Vandy Basketball

-Senator Landis presented the resolution. He noted that this proposal has already been brought to Vice Chancellor Williams, who is in support of such a program.

-Technical question, Senator Gregor: Number of seats?

Landis: 2000, additionally the ticket price fluctuates depending on interest from the public.

-No debate

-Senator Owen moves to previous question, Senator McKittrick seconds

-Attorney General Pruitt takes a Role call vote

-The bill passes

1. b. Resolution S:12-13-07: Commitment to Sustainable Investments

-Senator Brennan presented the resolution along with Michael Diamond of the Alternative Energy Club and Skyler Hutto of SPEAR. Mr. Hutto notes the reasons for Vanderbilt University being included on the Princeton Review’s list of green institutions, including the Green Fund program as well as the LEED certification legislature passed by VSG in the 2011-2012 school year.

-Mr. Diamond spoke about the specifics of the legislature, particularly the language regarding “hydrocarbon exploration”. He mentioned the inevitable negative consequences of the combustion of hydrocarbons beyond 1/5 of the currently known reserves. He made the claim that this lead to fossil fuel investments potentially being overvalued by 5 times their future amount. Mr. Diamond continued to say that the presenters felt it would be for the good of the endowment to divest from these investments.

-Senator Brennan stated that passage of the resolution would recommend to the administration that this topic is something the student body feels strongly about, and reiterated that the intention was not to harm the endowment in any way.

-Technical question, Senator Owen: Have you spoken to the Office of Investments about this proposal? Michael Diamond: Yes, but they have not responded.

-Technical question, Senator Gregor: How would the Office of Investment know if this would be a profitable investment 5, 10, etc., years in the future? MD: We have full faith in the capability of the fund managers to successfully determine which investments will be profitable.

- “ Senator Roth: What is the definition of the term “significant harm” in this language? Skyler: Up to Office of Investments to determine.

- “ Senator Escamilla: Why raise this issue now, when there has been no response from the Office of Investments?

- “ Senator Rao: Wouldn’t it be risky to invest in these uncertain energy companies? Skyler Hutto: The process has a 5-10 year timespan, so the risk is minimized. Senator Brennan: The resolution does not state that hydrocarbon investments should be replaced with green technologies. Michael Diamond: There is inherent risk in betting on the behavior of governments to honor their stated commitments to fuel use. Senator Brennan: The way in which a University invests its money is a statement.

-Senator X: ? Skyler Hutto: The results of a 2011 survey show that 75% of Vanderbilt University students

-Senator Bayles: How many students were in the study? Skyler Hutto: (uncertain)

-Debate

Senator McKittrick: There are no down sides to this resolution, and I am in support.

Senator Gregor: It is not feasible to cease all investment in all types of hydrocarbons. He does not support this resolution

Senator Roth: Removing our investments will not bankrupt any of these companies. He is in support.

Presenters: This bill does not say that all hydrocarbon exploration is bad, only that new reserves should not be added to the pile of current reserve.

Senator Landis: To echo Senator McKittrick, I trust the ability of the Office of Investments to pursue successful investments which improve the fund, without the impetus of the bill, so I do not see the potential for negative repercussions from the passage of this bill.

Senator Escamilla: The way we vote on this bill will set a precedent for how the students express their feelings by pressuring the administration.

Senator Rao: If the investors for the University are so competent, this bill will be nothing more than empty words, which would be harmful to the reputation of the organization

Senator Y: This bill does not represent the interests of the students.

Senator Brennan: We have the prerogative to speak on the behalf of the students, that is why we were elected.

Senator Owen: Between 4 and 15% of our economy is invested in these types of businesses. With the current political climate, it is not a good idea to weaken the endowment. That said, our endowment has been doing very well in recent years, and recommending to the University that put themselves in a position for potential harm is a bad idea.

Senator Werner: This is a good recommendation to make, and nothing more.

Senator Landis: The resolution does not call for picking worse stocks instead of better, only that sustainability be brought into the investment considerations.

Senator Yarlaggada: We should ask the student body what they think.

Senator Moore: I think this entire thing is a good idea. We want to show that we are a student body of people who care about the world. Historically, these have been safe investments, but I trust the Office. I support this.

Senator McKittrick: I still support this, it is less political than other resolutions that we have struck down in the past.

Senator Owen: The language relating to “significant harm” to the is too dangerous.

Senator Z: Passing this bill will bring us into line with the student body.

Senator Gregor: This bill would put the University at risk for harm. It is not good to assume that the students would want to place the sustainability above the economic feasibility of the University.

Skyler Hutto: This is not about harming companies through our investments, this is about being consistent with our values. It is important to remain on the Green Honor roll, due to the effects this has on the academic standing of the university.

Senator Brennan: We are not privy to the details of our endowment, so the resolution is worded with the phrase “significant harm” in order to send a message to the Office of Investments while allowing them room to use their own discretion.

Senator Pinsky: This resolution sends a message: We want to focus on this more than we have in the past.

Senator Escamilla: This will have an effect on our public perception due to the uncertainty from this sort of statement.

Senator X: I agree with Senator Escamilla, we need to be hesitant in passing a resolution when we don’t know how the student body would feel about this financial matter.

Senator Landis: I disagree with Senator Escamilla, we have passed this type of bill in the past. The entire student body doesn’t need to support an issue for it to be considered, and we shouldn’t limit ourselves only to the issues we ran on in our platform. We should pass productive legislature without returning for the opinion of every constituent.

Senator Rao: Reads a quote from Cambridge report discussing the investments practices already in place This bill does not do anything, as the University already has this sort of policy in place.

Senator Brennan: Moves to previous question. The motion is seconded, proceeds to a roll-call vote.

-The resolution passes 16 – 11.

-       New Business, Speaker Neely

1. c. Upcoming VSG Events – Speaker Neely

v  SPC Committee Meeting – February 3^rd @ 8 PM in Rand 303

v  Next Session – February 6^th @ 7 PM in Central Library

1. IV. Adjourn, Speaker Neely

1. I. Welcome
2. a. Call to Order, Speaker Neely
3. b. Roll Call, Secretary Chandler Bair
4. c. Guest Speaker, Kristin Shorter, Director of Greek Life

v  Kristin Shorter addressed the Senate and spoke about Greek opportunities on campus and the expansion of IFC, NPC, and NPHC chapters.  Kristin answered any questions senate members had.

1. II. Old Business, Speaker Neely
2. a. Open Floor for Vanderbilt Student Body

v  Students raise concerns or comment on issues that they would like addressed by the student government

1. III. Presentation of Resolutions
2. a. Resolution S:12-13-05: Confirming Academic Affairs Chair

v  Julie Babbage chose to go abroad this semester and the appointment for a new Academic Affairs Chair has been made.

v  Passed? Yes

1. IV. New Business, Speaker Neely
2. a. Budget Update – Treasurer Kevin Schuler

v  Expenses were comprised of events for Blair, Movie of the Month, Airport Shuttles, General Co-Sponsorships of the Month, CommonDores Pancake Event, and Study Breaks for Residential Areas.

v  Balances: committees still have money remaining to spend on initiatives and programming, Residential Senator Programming still has money remaining for special events, service initiatives, and dinner discussions.  Cabinet still has money remaining for CommonDores programming and printing and publicity.  Finally, there is still $12,291.50 remaining for General Co-Sponsorships and $4,000.00 for Co-Sponsorships of the Month.

v  Questions or Comments? Contact Treasurer Kevin Schuler at Kevin.m.schuler@vanderbilt.edu

1. b. CSOM Update – Vice-President Cherry

v  January CSOM: Mannafit, January 29^th.  No volunteers are needed as of now.

1. c. Upcoming VSG Events – Speaker Neely

v  AcFee Committee Membership Applications Out

1. Applications are due on January 21^st by midnight.

v  Vanderbilt vs. Kentucky: Thursday, January 10^th @ 8 PM

1. First 500 students get a SPC championship ring-shaped paperweight.

v  VSG Presents Looper: Friday, January 11^th

1. Invite people to the event on Facebook!  We need volunteers for the event as well.
   1. V. Adjourn, Speaker Neely