The Campus Conservative

(Source: Flickr) This week, the Student Government Association’s (SGA’s) Executive Board announced that only senators who are at least six weeks into their term are eligible to fill the vacant Secretary officer seat which SGA Officer Braelynn Seely vacated after she replaced Katie Hicken this week as Vice President. But I believe the Executive Board is incorrect. After a review of SGA’s governing documents, rather than limiting officer roles to some senators, I believe every sitting senator is eligible to run for the vacant Secretary seat under the SGA Constitution. In the following, I will attempt to show from the SGA Constitution how I arrive at my conclusion that vacant officer positions are open to all senators and how there is no limitation to senators with six weeks’ tenure. If my interpretation is the correct one, then SGA is out of order and postpone its election until it can execute them within constitutional bounds. So let’s look at the text. THE TEXT SGA’s Co...

(Source: Student Government Association At UT-Tyler Facebook.) The Student Government Association (SGA) at UT-Tyler met for its weekly meeting on Oct.3. Here are some highlights from this meeting. Tidwell Cancelled UT-Tyler President Michael Tidwell cancelled his previously scheduled appointment to speak to SGA about rebranding, Swoop and the strategic plan shortly before the meeting started due to an emergency, SGA President Savannah Seely told the assembly. Tidwell sent a member of his president’s cabinet, Provost Amir Mirmiran, who gave SGA an update on the strategic plan instead. SGA did not announce when and if Tidwell will speak in the future. Based on the enthusiasm Mirmiran said Tidwell has for student input, it seems Tidwell will reschedule his visit to SGA. Student Input Resolution Postponed As a result of Tidwell's absence, the Student Affairs Committee did not present is draft resolution that would confront administration over what the assembly last ...

(Source: Flickr) Last week, the Student Government Association (SGA) at UT-Tyler voted to approve a rule change in the appropriations committee’s guidelines that excludes semester-long requests, explicitly targeting student groups who meet throughout the semester. SGA Treasurer Jacob Mcleod said the new rule is to prevent student organizations who provide pizza at their weekly meetings from tying up SGA funding. The two-time Treasuerer said these groups prevent the Student Government Appropriations Committee (SGAC) from issuing funding grants to student groups who come to the committee later or near the end of the semester. “We will not approve semester-long funding requests,” Mcleod told the assembly, reading the new rule aloud. “If an event is reoccurring, the committee encourages student organizations to submit a funding request for each event. Funding will be determined on a case-by-case basis,” he read. However, according to Mcleod, of the student organizations wi...

(Source: Marc Verch via Flickr) The Student Government Association (SGA) at UT Tyler's members showed near unanimous support tonight for a possible effort by UT-Tyler to lobby the City of Tyler to construct new sidewalks in nearby neighborhoods. The proposal would ask the City of Tyler to spend its own money to construct new sidewalks so that students who live near campus can walk to campus without having to walk in the street. "The challenge is that we have found that we have 227 of your colleagues who live in that area north and west of campus, between Fifth Street, Varsity, the Loop and Old Omen and that is not UT-Tyler property," Vice President for Operations and Strategic Initiatives Jerry Stuff told SGA Wednesday. Target region in Jerry Stuff's speech to SGA for new City of Tyler sidewalk construction. (Source: Google Maps) "What we’re seeking is sidewalks that would be constructed by the city in that region so that our colleagues, our fel...

(Source: Uthman Badru, Senator Candidate) On Thursday, the Student Government Association (SGA) will open its polls to student in its annual fall elections for new student senators. There are 27 candidates and 25 available seats. Since student government is arguably the most powerful lobbying group on campus, with its positions on official policy going all the up to the Board of Regents desk and it being the official voice of 10,000 UT-Tyler students, The Campus Conservative Blog attempted to contact all 25 candidates via email Tuesday to learn more about who wants to run this powerful organization. Thirteen candidates responded and the Blog includes their responses below. The Campus Conservative is grateful for candidates’ responses on short notice and hopes the information they provided can produce a more educated and empowered student voter. Here are some of UT-Tyler’s Fall 2018 student government candidates. Uthman Badru Q: What seat are you running for?...

The Student Government Association at UT-Tyler held its first meeting Wednesday. Here are some of the meeting's highlights. Highlights from @UTTylerSGA 's first meeting of the semester: -Talon Student Media is rebranding to Patriot Student Media Productions. Editor-in-Chief said will "revamp" newspaper, intro podcast and continue TV broadcasts. Editor's new focus is on reporting accuracy. /1 #SGAUTT — James Hescock (@JHescock) September 5, 2018 Also said outlet will aim to cover "every side of every issue." (We shall see....) -VP of Communications' new focus is SGA's social media presence. Said accounts have now received noticeable increase engagement. -Next week, SGA will vote on new changes to SGAC policy. /2 #SGAUTT — James Hescock (@JHescock) September 5, 2018 - @KatieHicken and @TreasurerMcleod will represent UT-Tyler at UT System Student Advisory Council this weekend in Austin. -Bike Share Program received 20...

(Source: Flickr) This week, UT Tyler students will have an opportunity to vote on a measure substantially increase the mandatory Intercollegiate Athletics Fee. According to the ballot, the proposal will increase the maximum allowable amount the University can charge a student by 33 percent, from $180 per semester to $240, and phase this in over the next two years. For a student with 15 credit hours, that’s an approximately $120 annual increase. This is something every student should have a fair opportunity to vote on.  However, it seems an athletics victory is more likely now thanks to multiple failures by the Student Government Association (SGA). SGA portrays the Athletics Fee in a positive light on the ballot which may persuade voters to support it and the proposed increase. It reads:   Do you support the increase of the UT Tyler athletic fee? The proposed fee would increase by $2 per semester credit hour (from $12 to $14) next year and another $2 per semester ...

Source: kelly bell photography via Flickr On April 12, I wrote about how The Student Government Appropriations Committee's (SGAC's) denial of the Society for Human Resource Management's (SHRM's) UT Tyler chapter's funding request demonstrates how students' First Amendment rights need more protection. Here's a copy of the email I sent to Student Government Association (SGA) Treasurer Jacob Mcleod on April 13 about what I believe are infringements of three student organizations' First Amendment protections by SGAC when it denied groups' funding requests based on their activities' perceived benefit to the student body. I'll keep the blog updated with this story! If you believe in free expression without punishment, please email Treasurer Mcleod and ask him to make the three reforms to SGAC Guidelines I mention at the bottom of my email. His email is JMcLeod at uttyler dot edu or call his office at 903.565.5648.  -- Dear Treasurer M...

(Source: Flickr) Recently, I was looking over the minutes of the committee that distributes funds to requesting student organizations for various activities, the Student Government Appropriations Committee (SGAC). For the most part, SGAC has done a good job approving requests from whichever organization without regard to the organization’s expressed viewpoint. It has distributed hundreds of dollars to multiple religious and political student organizations, something the committee has not always done until recently. However, one instance in 2017 should give First Amendment advocates cause for concern. On Nov. 2, 2017, SGAC denied a request from the Society for Human Resource Management’s (SHRM’s) UT Tyler chapter for $73.29 on the basis that the committee determined the chapter's event would not be sufficiently beneficial to the student body. The committee wrote in its minutes: This request was denied because SGAC felt it didn’t have the benefit the entire student bo...