Associated Students, Inc. California State University, Long Beach THE SENATE/BOARD OF DIRECTORS MINUTES Meeting #1 June 4, 2014 1. CALL TO ORDER Vice President Baghdassarian called the meeting to order at 3:30pm. 2. ROLL CALL Voting Members Present Mr. Alex Mohtashem, College of the Arts Ms. Mona Moucharrafie, College of Business Administration Mr. Joshua Wong, College of Business Administration (Ar. @ 3:35pm) Mr. Jonathan Ibarra, College of Education (elected today) Mr. Kshitij Kawatra, College of Engineering Mr. Jose Salazar, College of Engineering Mr. Randy Le, College of Health & Human Services Mr. Kyle Martinez, College of Health & Human Services Mr. James Allen, College of Liberal Arts Ms. Joanna Salgado, College of Liberal Arts Ms. Bryana Olmeda, College of Natural Science & Math Mr. Chris Myrter, College of Natural Science & Math Ms. Alexa Ang, At-Large Mr. Marvin Flores, At-Large Ms. Miriam Hernandez, At-Large Mr. Rick Payan, At-Large Ms. Kelsey Reyes, At-Large Ms. Liliana Rios Melchor, At-Large Ms. Nayiri Baghdassarian, Vice President Dr. Jeane Caveness (CSULB President s Designee) Non-voting Members Present Mr. Richard Haller (ASI Executive Director) Dr. Kim Tabari (Asst. Director, Student Involvement & Leadership) Voting Members Absent VACANT, College of Arts Ms. Gee Moon, College of Education Jeff Jarvis (CSULB Faculty Rep) Non-voting Members Absent 3. INVOCATION Invocation was presented by Dr. Daniel O Connor, Chair of the Academic Senate. Dr. O Connor shared a quote by Dr. Maya Angelou: My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style. He added that the senators have an excellent spirit of passion and being a part of the student government they will have a thriving college experience. He encouraged the board members to show compassion towards each other and the student body in order to best serve in their roles as leaders. Senate Minutes, Meeting #1, June 4, 2014 1
4. PUBLIC COMMENTS Mr. Fernando Bogarin, 2013-14 Senator for College of Arts, expressed enthusiasm for the new board members and advised them not to be afraid of framing decisions for the well-being of the students. He asked the members to bond together and to collectively advocate for what is best for their constituencies. 5. APPROVAL /CORRECTIONS AND APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA (M)Wong (S) Olmeda to approve the Senate Agenda, Meeting #1, June 4, 2014, as amended. Dr. Caveness noted a correction in item #10.B.3 and said that if the college council has already elected a senator, it should read: Confirmation of the Senator for College of Education. 6. ANNOUNCEMENTS FROM THE CHAIR VP Baghdassarian said that she is very excited to see the enthusiasm of the members of the board. She invited Recording Secretary Mr. Karthik Sivakoti to introduce himself to the board. Mr. Sivakoti said that he is currently pursuing his Masters in Electrical Engineering, and as the Recording Secretary for the Senate he prepares the minutes of the meeting. He expressed his excitement in working with the new board members. 7. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES FROM THE LAST MEETING A. Senate Minutes, Meeting #32, May 7, 2014 (M)Salgado (S) Payan to approve Senate Minutes, Meeting #32, May 7, 2014, as amended Dr. Caveness noted a correction in Item #8-A-3: it should read Dr. Caveness noted in the BOC minutes that a couple of organizations which submitted grants for Academic Competitions did not send any representatives to the BOC and she asked whether they will be able to apply for funds next year. Dr. Tabari noted a correction under Item #9-A-3: Senator Oliver asked his name not be added to the list of supporters for this particular resolution. 8. CONSENT CALENDAR/REPORTS A. Approval of Reports from Subsidiary Boards 1) Board of Control (BOC), Meeting #33, May 6, 2014 Senator Ang noted a correction under Item #8-B: the vote count was listed as 1-4-1; therefore, the motion should be failed instead of passed. Mr. Haller concurred. Dr. Tabari explained that once the Senate representatives for the Subsidiary boards get elected, they need to present a brief synopsis of the meetings when they are agendized. B. Acceptance of Minutes from Subsidiary Boards There were none. C. Receipt of Minutes by the Senate There were none. (M) Mohtashem (S) Allen to approve the Consent Calendar/Reports. Senate Minutes, Meeting #1, June 4, 2014 2
9. OLD BUSINESS A. Legislative Business There was none. B. Non Legislative Business There was none. C. Executive Business There was none. 10. NEW BUSINESS A. Legislative Business There was none. B. Non Legislative Business 1) BOD #2015-01: Approval of the 2014-15 Senate Working Rules The Chari called for additions/revisions. Dr. Caveness noted a correction under the section Time of Meeting - (A) & (F): She said that upon referring the Bylaws it was found that the permission of the VP for Student Services is no longer required for calling meetings during holidays and extended vacations. Dr. Caveness pointed out towards the section Suspension of the Working Rules and asked to change the number of affirmative votes from 11 to 12. Dr. Tabari noted a correction under the section Senate Representatives to AS Executive Commissions- (C) and said that term Commissions need to be replaced with Programming Board. Dr. Tabari noted a correction under the section Public comments (B) & (D) and asked the time frame to be changed from 20 minutes to 15 minutes. (M) Salazar (S) Reyes to approve BOD #2015-01: amended. Approval of the 2014-15 Senate Working Rules as 2) BOD #2015-02: Election of Senate Pro Temp The Chair asked for nominations. Senator Salazar nominated himself. Senator Salazar expressed his feeling of profound proudness in being a part of this board and added that he will serve as Senate Pro Temp as best as he could if elected. Senator Melchor nominated Senator Payan and he accepted. Senator Payan said that he holds the prime attributes of public speaking and the capability of holding meetings which he has harnessed while being part of the AS cabinet last year. He also added that he has been a member of the Debate Team for the past 5 years and has regularly attended meetings of the ASB in high school. Similarly, he has also held Student Leadership positions and has a brief teaching experience. He concluded that in dire times of necessity he has the required leadership capability which makes him the ideal candidate for this position. Senator Salgado nominated herself. Senator Salgado said that she would be good at this job because she has seen the job of Senate Pro Temp in action. She attended many Senate meetings in her freshman year and also sat in number of cabinet meetings. She added that she has been the VP of ASB in her High School thus she is familiar with the procedures of how to run the meetings making her the ideal candidate for this position. Senate Minutes, Meeting #1, June 4, 2014 3
Senator Hernandez nominated herself. Senator Hernandez said that she has the ability to be a leader and she feels highly honored to be a part of the Senate. She said that if a situation arises for her to conduct this meeting she would do it with professionalism, honesty and integrity. Senator Myrter nominated Senator Wong. Senator Wong said that he was the President of his Business Fraternity last year and he has the capability to take the best decisions even under pressure. VP Baghdassarian asked if any of the members want to speak on behalf of the candidates as to why they want the particular candidate to be chosen as Chair Pro Temp. Senator Salazar said that he has known Senator Hernandez for more than a year and she has always displayed excellent skills of leadership and reliability. Senator Moucharrafie said that she has met Senator Wong through ABSOC and he is highly organized, punctual and approachable. She added that he would prove to be the ideal person for this position. Dr. Tabari asked if all the nominees will be able to attend all the summer meetings, because the VP may need to miss one meeting and the Senate Pro Temp will need to serve as chair. Senator Wong rescinded his nomination owing to the reason that he will not be able to attend the meetings during summer because he will be in Seattle for his internship. A roll-call vote was done. Senator Payan received 8 votes; Senator Salgado received 7 votes; Senator Hernandez received 3 votes; and there was 1 Abstain There was a run off between Senators Salgado and Payan. In the spirit of transparency, Senator Payan said that he is in his senior year and he will be graduating at the end of fall 2014 semester. Thus, an election will have to be done for the Chair Pro Temp again after he leaves office. Voting was conducted, resulting in Senator Payan 9 and Senator Salgado 10 Senator Salgado was elected as the Senate Pro Temp. 3) Confirmation of (1) College of Education (CEDU) Senator Jonathan Ibarra Dr. Caveness administered the Oath of Office and confirmed Senator Jonathan Ibarra as the College of Education Senator. He then took his seat on the board. 4) BOD #2015-04: Election of (2) Senate Reps to the Board of Control (BOC) Mr. Haller said that the BOC meets weekly on Tuesdays at 3:30-5:30pm. He said that BOC deals with the Finance, Personnel and Business Affairs, Management activity, and reviewing applications for funding from Student Organizations. They also review the minutes of IPCDC BOT and HRMC and budget. Senator Myrter nominated himself. Senator Myrter said that he has a lot of position in Finance and Inventory Control. He said that he has been the voting member on the IFC (Internal Fraternity Council) Board and additionally was also Senate Minutes, Meeting #1, June 4, 2014 4
the President of his Fraternity, during which he worked closely with the Treasurer and accomplished increasing dues to a 120%. He added that he has worked 5 years as a Lab Assistant where he enhanced his skills of Inventory Management. Thus, he concluded by saying that he is an ideal candidate for this position. Senator Salazar nominated himself. Senator Salazar said that he has prior experience in Finance while working for a span of 3 years as Manager for an 11 billion dollar corporation and optimizing the income levels of the business. Senator Reyes nominated herself. Senator Reyes said that she has been a Resident Assistant for the past 2 years. During her tenure, she used to organize events efficiently and learnt optimizing the expenses. Mr. Haller said that the nominee with the highest number of votes will be elected as the BOC Pro Temp and the second nominee elected will be the second representative for the BOC. A vote was conducted, resulting in: Senator Myrter -16; Senator Salazar 8; Senator Reyes 14 Senator Myrter was elected as the BOC Pro Temp. Senator Reyes was elected as the BOC Senate Representative. 5) BOD #2015-05: Election of (3) Senate Reps to the Human Resources Management Committee (HRMC) Mr. Haller said that the HRMC meets on the 4 th Friday of the month from 10 11 am dealing in the areas of Personnel policy, creation of Full Time Positions their classifications and compensations and salary schedules of the Full-Time Staff. Senator Myrter nominated Senator Salazar. Senator Salazar declined the nomination. Senator Kawatra nominated himself. Senator Kawatra said that he will be interested in contributing towards the need for more full-time positions for the students. Senator Wong nominated himself. Senator Wong stressed on the importance of Human Resources and said that it is the backbone for any company. He said that it would be a good learning experience for himself. Senator Ang nominated herself. Senator Ang said that it would be a great experience for her, and she being a fast learner is optimal for this position. Without objection, VP Baghdassarian stated that the 3 candidates will serve as the Senate Representatives for Human Resources Management Committee HRMC. 6) BOD #2015-08: Election of (2) Senate Reps to the University Student Union Board of Trustees (USU BOT) Mr. Haller said that the USUBOT meets on the 1 st Friday of every month from 1-3pm and the board member nominated will be required to sit on 1 of the 4 sub-committees which will meet once a month for an hour. The sub-committees are the Facilities, Program Evaluation, Services and the Campus Relations. Senate Minutes, Meeting #1, June 4, 2014 5
Senator Salgado nominated herself but shortly after rescinded her nomination. Senator Wong nominated himself. Senator Wong said that he was keen in being a part of the USUBOT since he is a Supply Chain and Operations major. He said that he is ideal for this position owing to his clear conception of these subjects. In addition, he has experience from his Internship last summer in North Carolina where he identified savings of over a million dollars for his company. He concluded that he intends on depicting the same ideology on the USUBOT thus enabling savings for the corporation. Senator Mohtashem nominated himself. Senator Mohtashem said that while he was at Citrus College, he served on a committee which evaluated mission statement, reviewed policies and reformed the budget. He said that he is organized and has a clear idea of what goes on inside the USU and also has gathered first-hand experience of duties as USUBOT Senate Representative from the several people he knew from the last year s BOT. He concluded that he has no time-conflicts enabling him to attend all meetings. Senator Salazar nominated himself. Senator Salazar said that he utilizes the USU on a daily basis and added that he was a part of the Long Beach City College ASB during which he learnt about the best resource allocation procedures. A vote was conducted, resulting in: Senator Wong 17; Senator Mohtashem 17; Senator Salazar 4 and 1 Abstain Senator Wong and Senator Mohtashem were elected as the USUBOT Senate Representatives. D. Executive Business 1) PA #2015-01: Confirmation of ASI Chief of Staff Jennifer Jenkins Ms. Jenkins said that her experience includes: Past ASI Secretary for the Women Affairs Organized two Take back the night and Speak Out with audience over 200 people Doing Half a Sky documentary upon teaming up with the Women s Resource Center Working for the past 3 years at the Women s Resource Center as Staff Member under Dr. Caveness ASI Cabinet Member of the Year 2013-2014 Her general plans while being the Chief of Staff includes: Focusing on jobs for Grads: working with businesses to hire Long Beach grads only which were on the platforms of the President and VP (Joe and Nayiri) Creating more job-fairs Creating publicity for all the Resource Centers Improving communication between Judiciary branch, Senate, Cabinet and the Programming Board Ally training for the student government creating more awareness amongst students She discussed Cabinet plans: Press Secretary Integrate with all media outlets AB540 Create an ally programming for students to get more knowledge about it Academic Affairs-fill all committee seats and have solid representation City Affairs Meet the city attorney and maintain healthy relationship Cultural Diversity Ethnic Diversity Disability Affairs - Ally training Government Recruitment Integrating with more community colleges Internal Affairs Parking reforms and Night Walk Senate Minutes, Meeting #1, June 4, 2014 6
LGBTIQ Trans-Gender Advocacy, Safe Zone Training Sustainability- Eco-Friendly campus System-wide Affairs Re-vitalizing Lobby Corps Veteran Affairs Vet Net Training Women Affairs Take Back the Night, Speak Out VP Baghdassarian said that Chief-of-Staff is the Presidents liaison between the Cabinet and the President. She added that they are also part of the Executive Team of ASI. Senator Reyes asked Ms. Jenkins on her plans of how she intends on improving communication between the Cabinet, Judiciary, Senate and the Programming Board. Ms. Jenkins said that she intends on making the Senate being more aware about Cabinet and vice versa. She intends on involving every member of the board with the cabinet in-order to bring more advocacy in programs. Dr. Caveness asked Ms. Jenkins to highlight a leadership style she intends on using while supervising the multiple officers. Ms. Jenkins said that she intends on being direct in her approach towards people and being informative. She said that uses a hands-on approach and intends on using the same ideology while working as the Chief-of-Staff. Senator Moucharrafie said that Ms. Jenkins plan of building relationships with businesses to hire only Long Beach Grads would affect diversity across the campus. She thus asked Ms. Jenkins how she intends on handling it. Ms. Jenkins said that the particular plan is a part of President Phillips platform which she would be supporting. She thus asked Senator Moucharrafie to frame the question to the President himself. Senator Mohtashem asked if AB540 Ally Training will also be included on her agenda. Ms. Jenkins replied that yes, it will be also added. (M) Salgado (S) Payan to confirm ASI Chief of Staff Jennifer Jenkins. Dr. Caveness said that Ms. Jenkins is a wonderful candidate and the quotation which Mr. O Connor presented in his invocation is apt for Ms. Jenkins. 2) PA #2015-02: Confirmation of ASI Chief Programming Officer Imani Cooper Ms. Cooper said that she is a Kinesiology major and in her 3 rd year in Cal State Long Beach. She started working with Beach Team and discovered her passion for Student Government. She said that she has a huge devotion towards community aspects and last year she was the Awards and Recognition Commissioner which the incoming Chief Programming Officer will oversee. She thus said that once confirmed she plans on restructuring everything and is very excited to be a part of the Student government. She presented the board her goals for the next year: Being Accessible and Approachable Create events for the students Wants to build relationship Nurture the boards love for serving the students Grow as an individual in leadership Promote the idea that ASI is a community (M) Mohtashem (S) Payan to confirm ASI Chief Programming Officer Imani Cooper Senate Minutes, Meeting #1, June 4, 2014 7
Senator Olmeda said that she has known Ms. Cooper for long and said that she would be a great candidate for this position. Senator Olmeda said that Ms. Cooper, while being in-charge of the Banquet, encouraged her to volunteer in events and used to help out communities. She added that Ms. Cooper is highly passionate towards Student Government. Senator Salgado said that Ms. Cooper is very hard-working and she is highly capable for this position. 3) PA #2015-03: Confirmation of Secretary for Disability Affairs Nicole Estanol Ms. Estanol said that she has been the Assistant Secretary for the Former Secretary for Disability Affairs and she intends on creating a safe and welcoming environment for the disabled students. She intends on building a good relationship and get feedbacks from students regarding modifications needed. She said that they had previously created a Student with Disability At-Large Organization which is social club for students encouraging sporting events. She intends on bringing lectures for the Nursing and Medical Students this year since medical students tend to forget empathy while dealing with patients with disabilities. (M) Mohtashem (S) Payan to confirm Secretary for Disability Affairs Nicole Estanol 4) PA #2015-04: Confirmation of Secretary for Systemwide Affairs Elizabeth Zambrano Ms. Zambrano said that she is English Major senior and she has been working with ASI for 2 years. She said that the Secretary of Systemwide Affairs is a representative for the President, ASI and the University in the CSSA. She said that she will have to review legislation, current policies affecting the students of CSULB. She said that in her first year she volunteered in Lobby Corp and she has lobbied for Non-Profit organizations of Long Beach thus making her aware of both California and Long Beach politics alike. She said that she attended CHESS twice and her current goals for this year involve: Improving Lobby Corps Advocating for financial aid Getting more students to register for vote (M) Salgado (S) Mohtashem to confirm Secretary for Systemwide Affairs Elizabeth Zambrano Senator Mohtashem said that Ms. Zambrano has evolved in a lot of things and she has done lot of lobbying for the undocumented students, affordability and she is the best candidate for the position. Senator Payan said that Ms. Zambrano is highly committed towards community service and she is indeed the best candidate for this position. 11. REPORTS A. Joseph Phillips, President of the Associated Students, Inc. President Phillips reported the following: Returned from Washington DC with Former President John Haberstroh for the National Campus Leadership Conference where they spoke about Affordability, Sexual Assault Prevention in Public Schools, Ivy leagues, etc. President Phillips and VP Baghdassarian worked on 24 Hour Study Center and Launching a pilot program in the USU West Wing beginning fall semester. Scholarships will be done again from the 3 elected execs stipends. SOAR- Helping incoming freshman, introducing ASI and the resources which they could utilize. Dream Resource Center Congratulated Ms. Zambrano for making it a success Senate Minutes, Meeting #1, June 4, 2014 8
Establishing relationship with the new President of the University and the VP of student services. 12. PUBLIC COMMENTS Mr. Haller said that there are still more Senate representative seats to be filled: Senate Audit Committee Lobby Corps Isabel Patterson Child Development Center Board of Trustees (IPCDC BOT) ASI Media Board (AMBOT) ASI Programming Board He urged members to read up on the committees and nominate themselves. Dr. Tabari said that if any Senator will not be present for the next meeting and is still interested in a position they can send an email of interest to the Chair. She said that she would email them the descriptions of remaining committees. Dr. Caveness said that there is such a great orientation for the members while they are serving on the board. She said that they will be given the proper tools and information to serve well and asked them to think about the great opportunity they would experience while being on the Board of Directors. Senator Moucharrafie asked if the Senators for the vacant boards will be selected at the next meeting. Dr. Tabari said that they will be elected in the upcoming meetings. 13. ADJOURNMENT Without objection Vice President Baghdassarian adjourned the meeting at 4:55pm. Senate Minutes, Meeting #1, June 4, 2014 9