Pittsburg State University - Kanza Yearbook (Pittsburg, KS)

Page 28 text:

Controversy Strikes Senate by Janet Stites Impeachment proceedings, high tur- nover of senators, a new vice president and a threatened libel suit were all a part of the 1979-80 Student Senate. John Perry, Ghent, KY., senior, and Mark Huffman, Olathe senior, were elected president and vice-president respectively, in an upset election. Perry, who was the chairman of the election board, resigned from his position at the last minute after the deadline for filing was extended. While many considered this move unethical, it did not stop Perry and Huffman. They hit the campaign trail in full force with the idea that Student Senate had previously been responsive to only a small portion of the student body, and they wanted to represent everyone. Approximately 22 per cent of the student body voted, and Perry and Huffman were declared the new Student DISCUSSING SEVERAL OF the trials and tribulations confronted by the Student Senate during the fall are Mark Huffman and John Perry, (photo by Bob Benignus) Senate president and vice-president. Perry and Huffman adopted a very loose type of student government. Senate meetings were conducted in an informal manner. Perry was definitely not a conventional senate president, ad- dressing university officials by their first names and hitch-hiking to Board of Regents meetings. He attended senate meetings wearing a red bandana over his long, curly hair accented with a marigold. Perry was an idealistic type of person. He felt that he and Huffman were predestined to become president and vice-president. He had great dreams, and during the president's report he would present ideas and philosophize about the effect his ambitions would have on the University, Many senators did not condone Perry and Huffman’s behavior, and tension mounted. The first senate meeting began 25 minutes late due to a lack of a quorum, and Perry seemed unable to generate enthusiasm in the senators. Things came to a head after the Collegio ran an editorial on Sept. 19 requesting the resignation of Perry as president. The Collegio’s editorial sparked the senators, who had talked of impeachment, to take action. Rick Van Pelt, Webb City, Mo., senior, presented the first reading of a resolution on Sept. 19 asking for Perry and Huffman's resignations. The resolution asked for the resignations on four grounds, the first being that Perry and Huffman had allowed mismanagement and misap- propriation of funds. This referred to an incident where $80 was taken from the Public Information Commission account by the treasurer, Tim Stewart, Overland Park junior, to pay for a picnic, without the consent of Molly Vomhof, Olathe junior, who was the commissioner. Perry had collected two dollars from each senator, but did not use it to pay the bill. Perry said that the money had been in his personal savings account during the five months that the discrepency went unnoticed. The resolution also said that Perry and Huffman had neglected the respon- sibilities of president and vice-president, and had neglected to follow con- stitutional policies and procedures. Van Pelt said that Perry had not at- tended the first Board of Regents meeting, that there had not been an official secretary in the senate office for

Page 27 text:

i MORE AND MORE people have turned to filling their tanks themselves with an effort of trying to save a little money.(photo by Brenda Collins) the rest—but the part that students do pay has risen drastically. Going hand in hand with the rising cost of tuition ($ the price of books. At Pitt- sburg State this is especially emphasized because there Is no textbook rental system; the students must buy outright every textbook they intend to use. Dr. Fischer said that there was a positive note, however. The solid students in the right areas have good foundations for good careers,” he said. The important thing is to make the right choices in order to make the economic sacrifices worthwhile. The economic advantages of living with one's parents, said Dr. Fischer, will probably contribute to the continuation of Pittsburg State as a commuter college. The psychological impact of being poor may be less for students than for other people, said Dr. Fischer, because most of a student's friends are in the same boat. There Isn’t the pressure of income hierarchy. Although today’s inflation hits everyone, students are the hardest hit. But they are also the ones most likely to come out of their personal economic slump with better jobs and more hope for the future. GAS PRICES sky rocketed as a result of the oil shortage photo by Brenda Collins) DIGGING THROUGH THE PURSE has become an all to commom event for Sheree Gamble In her attempt to cope with higher prices, (photo by Brenda Collins)

Page 29 text:

months, and that Huffman had neglected to make sure the treasurer was in the senate office during the summer. Van Pelt also said that there had been no effort made to appoint a parliamentarian and that Perry had not attended freshman previews. The resolution charged Perry and Huffman of not being representative of student body as a whole after Huffman referred to Greeks as having thin thoughts and shallow minds, and Perry said that he represented independents and minorities in a Collegio interview. Huffman threatened the senate with a libel suit unless the wording of the Whereas in the resolution stating that he and Perry allowed the misappropriation of funds was changed to state the specific charges against himself and Perry. On Oct. 3, approximately 100 students were present at the meeting when the resolution was presented on second reading. Perry’s supporters, each wearing a marigold, presented petitions which asked for the editors of the Collegio to make public apologies for the editorial which ran in the Sept. 19 issue. The petitions had 711 signatures; however, they had not been validated through the registrars office so could not be presented as a resolution. This is the largest audience I’ve seen here, said Perry. According to him sensationalism and yellow-dog jour- nalism were responsible for the large turnout. Those who are gaining access to the press are few. This control must be wrested from the handful, he said. An attempt to close discussion and vote on the resolution requesting the resignations failed after several opposing comments from the audience. A three and a half hour discussion commenced. Lori Hess, Cambridge sophomore, was given the floor early and then yielded it to members of the audience. One student said, I'm new on campus. I didn’t know what was going on. I came in here with an open mind. Why don’t you all just resign? Another student said to the senate, You were elected to help us, not turn this organization into a political bitch session. The meeting ended with Van Pelt amending his resolution to read that a meeting would be held between the senate and Perry and Huffman to discuss past, present and future senate policies. When it seemed that all had been solved and the senate was back on the track again, Perry suddenly dropped out of school. Huffman filled the position of president and Van Pelt was made vice- president on Oct. 3. Of the 37 positions on Student Senate only 14 students served the entire term. However, several things were ac- complished. Several committees were established such as the legal aid com- mittee, student advisement committee, campus development committee, and a committee to study allocation procedures. A commuter file for student carpooling STEVE ENNS, ELECTION BOARD CHAIRMAN, swears in Kathleen Harnish as the new Student Senate President for 1980-81. (photo by Alan Ford) was established as well as the trading post, a service in which students may buy and sell books through the senate. The senate was also instrumental in passing the health fee increase which enabled the Student Health Center to continue services. They also voted down an increase in parking permits: Huffman, as senate president, traveled to Washington D.C. on Feb. 13 where he met with President Jimmy Carter and approximately 300 other student body presidents in the United States, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia. The election for the 1980-81 Student Senate was much different than the previous one. Kathleen Harnish, Kinsley sophomore, and Dick White, Overland Park sophomore, were elected senate president and vice-president unopposed. Approximately 300 students voted in the election, a number less than half of those that voted the year before. Four senatorial positions were left unfilled on the voting ballot. Harnish and White are looking forward to the 1980-81 senate year. We want students to know where the senate office is and that they are always welcome, said Harnish. If senators will make senate their top priority, we will have a very successful year. I am very optimistic; we have already formed some new committees and we are looking at everything with an open mind,” she said. Time will tell how well Harnish and White will represent the student body. The 1979-80 senate was full of disagreement, but- accomplishments were made. It was a controversial year for the Student Senate.