6:11 p.m. | Attendance. VSA Council Meeting was moved to 6 p.m. this week to avoid conflicts with Super Bowl XLIV.
6:12 | Student Life announces that the Athletics Proposal endorsed by the Council this September was approved by the Committee on Curricular Policy (CCP). The proposal will next travel to the faculty before it is approved completely.
6:20 | Committee Report from CCP from Academics: “We talked about the relationship between departments and programs in the curriculum. There was a course proposal that sparked a conversation about who gets to teach what and how that’s determined.” Strong adds that there is a subcommittee working to administer Course Evaluation Questionnaires online.
6:26 | The Council discusses a resolution in support of experiential learning; the Executive Board drafted the resolution after members of the Council expressed frustration last week with the recent cancellation of Vassar summer abroad programs. A copy of the resolution can be found at the end of this blog entry.
6:33 | The Council endorses the resolution unanimously.
Fund Applications:
6:35 | Finance moves to allocation $2458 from the Conference Fund to the Asian Students Alliance for the upcoming East Cost Asian American Students Union event at the University of Pennsylvania on March 4. Motion passes unanimously.
6:37 | Finance moves to allocate $1350 from the Collaboration Fund to FWA. Motion passes unanimously.
6:41 | Finance moves to allocate $3800 from the Council Discretionary Fund to Council of Black Students (CBS). A representative from CBS explains that the money would go toward the organization’s annual Baccalaureate dinner.
6:50 | Activities moves to certify the Club of Sandwich, formerly known as the Gentlemen’s Sandwich Club.
7:02 | Certification of the Club of Sandwich will be delayed for a Forum on Domestic Violence, featuring special guests Vassar Director of Health Education Renee Pabst, Sergeant Incorvaia of Campus Security, Adjunct Assistant Professor of Sociology Darlene Deporto and two students who work as counselors for C.A.R.E.S., a student-run, non-judgmental counseling service offered to students 24 hours a day. Deporto teaches a course on Domestic Violence in the Sociology Department (Sociology 210a).
7:14 | Incorvaia: “We’re the contact point for all on-campus counseling services. As far as the things we take from the students, it’s all confidential—students don’t have to tell us anything they don’t want to.”
7:16 | Deporto: “If you ask most students on campus whether we have domestic violence, they will say no. Actually relationship abuse is designed to be invisible—it’s designed to make sure you don’t see it. the dynamics of an abusive relationship are structured in a way that is purposeful. Abusers by nature are obsessed with basically taking control of another human being and taking ownership of another human being through tactics that are hidden.”
7:19 | Deporto continues: “By the time you hear of an abusive relationship, not only is the perpetrator being abusive, but the victims will deny that this is happening, and they will often refuse help. Those kinds of things are reasonable given the situation—they are afraid and have been told by the abuser that no one will believe them and no one will help them. This fear is often debilitating.”
7:39 | Pabst feels that it’s very difficult to address issues of domestic violence at Vassar because “there is no official College charge” in Vassar’s judiciary regulations for domestic violence and relationship abuse.
7:49 | Discussion returns to the certification of the Club of Sandwhich.
7:50 | “I wonder if there is a reason you really need to be a VSA organization,” says Academics. A Club of Sandwich representative—who has identified himself as the Earl of Sandwich—explains that official certification would help them distribute “propaganda,” given that clubs cannot hang SARC-certified posters in the College Center without being an official VSA Organization. The group has requested annual funding of only $20.
8:11 | The motion to certify the Club of Sandwich fails in a 2-21 vote.
8:12 | Open Discussion: The Class of 2012 announced their class gift last Friday. 2012 explains that the class will fund-raise for a 24-hour study space in the Library.
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VASSAR STUDENT ASSOCIATION: Council Resolution 24-2
Supporting Opportunities for Summer Language Study
WHEREAS, immersion experiences for study of a foreign language offer students the only avenue toward true fluency of a language.
WHEREAS, an understanding of multiple languages is an invaluable asset for a college graduate in this era of global citizenship.
WHEREAS experience outside of the United States is transformative for the depth and maturation of a student’s personal and academic world view.
WHEREAS, circumstances such as curricular requirements, positions in student government, athletic seasons, etc. prevent many Vassar students from experiencing language immersion programs during the academic year.
WHEREAS, almost two-thirds of Vassar’s student body receives financial aid and many of these students are unable to fund summer travel experiences independently.
WHEREAS, budgetary reductions have necessitated the cancellation of Vassar’s summer language programs.
BE IT RESOLVED THAT:
1. THE VSA STRONGLY SUPPORTS the availability of high quality, affordable summer opportunities for immersion-based language learning.
2. THE VSA URGES the senior officers and the language departments to develop cost-effective alternatives to the eliminated programs that enable students without financial means for independent travel.
3. THE VSA PROMOTES collaboration among departments and offices (including but not limited to the Fellowships Office, the Career Development Office, and the JYA Office) to create alternative opportunities for students to study language during the summer.
We would like to let everyone know that we thank the VSA for considering our fine organization. We remain strong in the face of this decision and plan on continuing our non-recognized organization with as much zeal as ever.
How did moving the meeting to 6:00 avoid conflicts with the Super Bowl? That’s about the time when the game started!