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ABA Notes ~ Stephan Otto, Student Rep.
I attended the ABA Fall Roundtable last month. I received some useful information, a more thorough education on the ABA, learned more about a new ABA nationwide goal/competition regarding public service (more information on this later) and met some great folks from around the region! Attending representatives exchanged ideas about what kinds of programs seem to be working at their schools, and which programs don't work. It was excellent that L&C was represented, and our support of the ABA reflected very well on our students and school.
In fact, as it turned out, I was the only person from any Oregon school at the meeting. The majority of attendees were from California and there was also a large contingent from Idaho.
Board of Trustees ~ Robin Snyder, Student Rep.
On November 20, the Board of Trustees convened at the upper campus for its fall meeting. The Board of Trustees is composed of school administrators and financial supporters of Lewis & Clark from across the country. The group was divided into four committee meetings of about 20 people each to discuss pertinent issues facing the College.
Transportation and parking received the most discussion in the committee meeting I attended. Before the meeting, law students mailed Board members an information packet detailing student concerns with transportation issues, as well as proposed solutions. During the discussion, President Mooney told the committee that the Transit Center parking structure (estimated cost $19 million) will be constructed before the proposed law school expansion project (estimated cost $16 million). President Mooney expects the Transit Center to be funded from bonds, revenues from parking fees, and possible donors. He also stated that the estimated completion date for the Center project is scheduled for September 2000. The Board of Trustees passed a resolution allocating $1.2 million to hire an architecture firm to draw up plans for the project.
The Board also discussed a resolution setting parking fees for students next semester. Originally, the tiered fee structure was based on the number of people per carpool and required each carpool member to register with Campus Safety. After forty minutes of intense haggling and discussion, the committee eventually adopted the following: single occupancy vehicles $150 per semester, carpools (regardless of size) $100 per semester, resident vehicles (undergraduate students who live on campus) $75 per semester. While this fee structure is not ideal, it will prevent many complications that would have arisen from the tiered fee structure and subsequent enforcement problems.
Finally, there was limited discussion on the viability of alternative transportation measures. Gene Wixson, the ASLC president, and I argued the benefits of the downtowner Pioneer shuttle service and advocated the expansion of this service to hourly neighborhood shuttles. We pointed out to Board members and administrators that research shows a high percentage of students live in the Sellwood/Hawthorne and Lake Oswego areas, both of which are relatively inaccessible to campus using public transportation. President Mooney claimed that the College is "still looking into this option." Though this option has been discussed for some time now, to date the administration has done virtually nothing to facilitate it.
The Board of Trustees meets four times per year and its next meeting is scheduled for February 1999. At that time, the Board will reconsider parking fees and further discuss transportation alternatives, as well as discuss other issues that will be set on the agenda.
Budget Committee ~ Kevin Minoli and Sabrina Venskus, Student Reps.
The Faculty Budget Committee met several times throughout November in an attempt to balance the budget for fiscal year 2000. Goals for the entire committee included controlling rising tuition costs and adding an additional tenure-track faculty member. In addition, SBA representatives to the committee advocated increased funding for computer access in the library, student organizations, and the Loan Repayment Assistance Program.
The administration originally presented a budget based upon an entering class of 210 with a 5% tuition increase (to $19,180). The committee sent the budget back to the administration with instructions to balance the budget based upon 205 incoming students, the maximum number set by the faculty at their fall retreat. After making significant cuts, the administration was able to achieve the balance without increasing tuition over 5%.
The budget committee made a preliminary presentation of this budget to the entire faculty, in order to get a sense of their priorities, and will resume work in the spring.
Business Law Committee ~ Davis Yee, Student Rep.
Next semester's Business Roundtable Topic deals with the Y2K problem
(a.k.a. Year 2000 problem). Students are encouraged to apply as roundtable scholars.
The application deadline is December 2, 1998. Selected roundtable scholars will receive
$500 and will participate in discussions with faculty and members of the community.
Curriculum Committee ~ Alex Donahue and Margi Lifsey, Student Reps.
Natural Resources Committee ~ Amie Wexler and Alex West
The Curriculum Committee has been evaluating spring semester externship applications and spring semester tutorial applications. It also met with the Natural Resources Committee to discuss the Draft 3-Year Plan for class offerings. The Natural Resources program will be maintained at current levels, with no major changes. One or two new classes may be added over the next year or so, but only to replace discontinued ones. We will have no budgetary or faculty expansions in the Natural Resources area.
Faculty Committee ~ Brett Brownscombe and Brent Foster, Student Reps.
The topic of the November 17 faculty meeting was the proposed 1999 annual budget. Faculty Budget Committee chair, Professor Bill Funk, presented the proposed budget and requested feedback and direction on various issues from the faculty at large. Budget assumptions included a goal of 205 incoming students in future years and halting the trend of tuition hikes. Additional information showed a pattern of a steady decrease in applicants since 1994 (from 2470 to 1489), which is consistent with the national and regional trend. The law school also has a more desirable student to faculty ratio than other schools of comparative size and student body, and is tops in the state of Oregon.
The faculty responded to a proposed decrease in faculty research grant money, as well as adjunct course funding, with general opposition. Professor Michael Blumm introduced a motion to restore research grant funding by spending some of "the bulge"-a term used to describe this year's budget surplus created by the higher than expected number of first year students.
By far the hottest and most dialogue-provoking topic of the budget conversation was the issue of potentially hiring an additional professor for next year. At its annual retreat last summer, the faculty committed to the goal of hiring three new faculty members in the next three years. While already committed to hiring a patent professor for next year, the faculty is considering the creation of an additional position. But given that this is a world governed by the law of thermodynamics, where you can't get sumthin' from nuttin', the source of discussion and debate was and still is where to find the money to pay for a potential new hire when no room currently exists in the budget. A tuition hike is one option. An increase in enrollment, a cut in annual faculty pay raise percentages, or trimming the expense side (e.g. decreasing sabbatical opportunities or visiting professors) were all raised as additional possibilities. It is safe to say that this issue is far from resolved. Students may hear presentations and meet the highly talented potential new hires during upcoming on-campus visits on November 30, December 2, and December 4.
Honor Board ~ Emily Davis, Student Rep.
Deans Huffman and Spence, along with Associate Dean Brad Lynott, are scheduled to meet to discuss recent acts of vandalism and hate mail occurring on the law school campus. The SBA briefly discussed the incidents at its November 22 meeting, and I met with Associate Dean Lynott to discuss this problem. SBA is attempting to tailor its response both to combine efforts with the administration and to avoid gratifying the perpetrator with publicity and attention. Currently SBA is not addressing the issue head-on, and the plan is to wait until further research is done on potential ramifications of a large-scale response. In the meantime, students are reminded that vandalism in any form is a violation of the honor code, as is failing to report a known violation. Please report any illicit behavior to Emily Davis.
Student Services Committee (Internal SBA Committee) ~ Alex Donahue
The Committee is working on the following priority items:
1) LOAN REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS: We are actively supporting the LRAP promotion efforts
2) POSTING OF SCHOOL BUDGET: We are looking into the possibility of this, so that students may see where their money goes. We would like to know how many students are interested.
3) MORE $$ FOR SBA: We are supporting the Budget Committee reps in working to get more funding for SBA. We would like to know what activities students think deserve better funding.
4) CHILD CARE: We are coordinating with Older/Wiser Law Students (OWLS) in exploring how to set up a child care system for the law school.
5) ATM ON CAMPUS: We are exploring the options for getting an ATM for campus. Dean Huffman currently says that it is not possible, but the committee is continuing to search for possibilities.
6) MICROWAVE: Some progress has been made-we have a second microwave
in the lounge. Now we are trying to get it to work.
MASSAGES IN THE STUDENT LOUNGE!!!!
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11
CHEAP!!!
~SIGN UPS AND TIMES TO FOLLOW~