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Student Senate Handbook
Particpating in the Democratic Conversation

What is the Student Senate?

The Associated Students of the University of Washington (ASUW) Student Senate is the legislative subcommittee of the ASUW Board of Directors (BOD). It is responsible for representing the opinions of all students that are members of the ASUW. The Student Senate strives to determine student opinion and form it into the policies of the ASUW.

The Senate was founded during the summer of 1994 from the foundations of its predecessor, known as the Student Assembly, which was formed in the 1980's. During the Spring 1994 elections, the student body passed by majority vote constitutional reforms proposed by the soon-to-be 1994-95 ASUW President Phil Neiswender. These reforms were in part aimed at making the ASUW a more democratic body by decentralizing power throughout the organization and away from the corporate directors (BOD). The Student Senate was one ramification of those reforms.

The Senate was built with a diverse membership in mind to ensure that groups throughout campus would be aware of the ASUW's activities, and that the ASUW would be aware of issues affecting students. Its membership includes representatives from the Greek and Multi-Greek systems, residence halls, ASUW commissions, commuter students, and various academic departments, among others. There are also at-large members, the ASUW President's proxy, and liaisons from the Board of Directors.

Any student registered as a member of the ASUW, though not able to vote, may submit legislation or speak on any issue during the public forum segment of the Student Senate meetings.

The Student Senate is the primary link between the leaders of the ASUW and its members, and is looked to by faculty and administrators alike as the voice of the student body.

You as a Student Senator

You were selected as a representative because you will bring dedication and commitment to the productivity of the Senate. Your greatest responsibility is to represent the people who elected or appointed you. You are their voice in the ASUW.

What does being a good representative entail? First of all, attendance is essential. You can't hope to communicate your constituency's concerns if you do not show up at Senate meetings. Attendance is mandatory, and absences can lead to removal.

Secondly, you must make the effort to research issues concerning your constituency and the campus as a whole. It is your responsibility to make an informed decision on any legislation brought before the Senate. To do this, you must make research a priority.

Finally, you must communicate. The Senate is a channel through which student opinion is communicated between the ASUW, administration, and campus community. Talk to your constituents, your classmates, and your instructors. Most importantly, discuss Senate issues with other ASUW members. The ASUW is full of committees and commissions, each working on its own projects. If we can keep up on what the rest of the student government is working on, we can more efficiently accomplish our goals.

When the Senate runs well, it is a great place to be and it serves the University well. Not only will you find heated debate over controversial issues, you will discover the camaraderie that develops when you work on a project with others. The Senate is an excellent place to meet people who are interested, like you, in becoming involved in the college experience. You can develop your communication skills, learn more about the campus and community, and work toward improving student life. And, of course, it always looks good on future resumes!

Executive Positions

All Senate executive positions are elected in the final weeks of Spring quarter by secret ballot. They formally assume their rolls at the final meeting of Spring quarter over the watchful eye of the outgoing leadership.

Chair: The Chair oversees all functions of the Senate and chairs meetings of the Senate and Steering Committee.

Vice Chair: The Vice Chair assumes the responsibilities of the Chair in the absence of the Chair. The Vice Chair also represents the Senate to the BOD and other organizations and oversees all Senate Standing Committees. The Chair may coordinate with the Vice Chair to ensure these duties are carried out.

Secretary: The Secretary is in charge of all administrative functions of the Senate, including maintaining Senate files, writing correspondence and press releases, keeping minutes, tracking legislation, and managing supplies.

Membership Coordinator: The Membership Coordinator is in charges of maintaining membership rosters, overseeing attendance records, and chairing the Membership Committee.

Committee Liaisons: Committee Liaisons attend various ASUW committee meetings as voting members. Their main task is to communicate between the Senate and other ASUW entities. They represent Senate interests to the committee, and report on committee activities to the Senate.

Senate Standing Committees

The Student Senate breaks down into five committees, each of which is responsible for a specific area of student government. During the first weeks of Fall quarter the Senate will elect a chair for each of the standing committees. Each committee sets its own agenda, elects a secretary, and provides reports on its activities to the Senate. The committees distribute projects among Senators. These projects include researching issues as a group, consider legislation that comes before them and providing student representation as Governance appointees for the ASUW on university committees. Because they are smaller and more focused than the Senate as a whole, the committees are able to consider issues in greater depth. The main importance of the committees is that all legislation that comes before the Senate must pass through the appropriate committee. As such, the committees are the heart of the Senate. Each Senator is responsible for participation in at least one committee.

Academic Affairs: The Academic Affairs Committee considers issues pertaining to the academic life of students as well as faculty-related issues. Some issues addressed in the past include curriculum changes, implementation of a minors program, and the importance of instructor evaluations. In the past (when the Senate was the Assembly), this committee took an active role in the discussion of the Cultural and Ethnic Diversity requirement and other proposals that were brought before the Faculty Senate.

Campus Life: Campus Life is charged with looking at the issues that affect students that aren't related to academics or legislation. This includes the insurance and housing policies, the food services and special services around campus.

Membership: The Membership Committee deals with all membership-related issues in the Senate. This includes informing Senators of meeting times, recruiting new members and student groups into the Senate, and conducting new member orientations.

Faculty/Administrative Affairs: This Committee is responsible for looking into the issues on campus that deal directly with the faculty or administration that are not related to curriculum or quality of life issues. This committee may deal with fees, tuition, and administrative policies on equality and discrimination. This is the most politically active of the committees.

Projects: The Projects committee has the task of addressing issues or projects that do not readily fit into the framework of the other committees, but still represent the concerns of the Senate. This committee may explore topics and projects from a very wide subject matter. The main purpose of this committee is to work on the issues of concern that would otherwise not be examined within the Senate committees.

Meeting Procedures

Student Senate meetings follow a particular pattern, and in order to fully participate in the meetings, it is helpful to know how you fit in as a part of the whole. There are two important constructs the Senate uses to help conduct an efficient meeting.

First, the meetings always follow a preset agenda. This agenda details which items the Senate will be dealing with, and the order in which they will be presented. The general agenda format is specified in our Rules (and is on the next page), but issues such as who is to be allowed to speak during Public Forum, or what legislation will be presented at the meeting, is set each week by the Steering Committee before the Senate meeting.

The second important characteristic of Senate meetings is that they are all conducted in accordance with the rules of parliamentary procedure (Sturgis edition). While it is usually not necessary to know every detail of these rules, it is necessary to have at least a basic knowledge of the key points. Following parliamentary procedure sometimes seems like a hindrance, but it is very helpful when many Senators wish to speak on the same issue, or when legislation is about to be voted on, and a member wishes to propose an amendment or other modification, while other Senators want to pass the legislation unchanged. One of the Vice Chair's duties is to help members with their parliamentary procedure. It is usually best to interrupt if you do not understand something; do not be afraid to ask for assistance in the middle of a meeting. This can't be stressed enough, if you don't know and you don't ask, the both you and the Senate lose out on a valuable and important voice from the student body. A list of some of the main parliamentary motions is here.

Other things to remember about Student Senate meetings are:

  • There is no assigned seating, except for the Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary, and Membership Coordinator, who sit at the front of the room facing the Senate.
  • It is best to arrive about ten minutes early, as there may be legislation or other information you need to read before the meeting starts.
  • Each Senator has a placard with their constituency printed on it. When you are asking a question, making a parliamentary motion, or voting, you should hold your placard in the air to help the Secretary or Chair identify you. During debate you should hold the white side of your placard toward the front if you are in favor of the motion, and the colored side toward the front if you are opposed. This allows the Chair to stagger comments so that the pro and con sides can alternate.
  • Handouts will be on a table by the door. (There are few handouts these days, as the Senate does its best to be a paperless organization)
  • If you need to leave early, notify the Membership Coordinator before the meeting starts.

    Parliamentary Procedure

    Below is a brief summary of parliamentary procedure to help guide you through some of the technicalities of the Senate. It is crucial to understand that parlipro should be seen as a helpful guide to running an organized meeting, and not a hindrance to discussion. If you want to do something and are not quite sure how to go about it, raise your hand and ask. No one expects new senators to understand the system and everyone is willing to help you through the learning process.

    One of the most important things to know is how to get recognized. The Chair is the person who calls on members of the Senate to speak. If a motion is being discussed and you would like to speak, raise your hand until the chair calls on you. If many people want to speak, the Chair will nod at you when they get your name on the speakers list.

    Motions - Motions are classified, according to their purposes and characteristics, into four groups:

    I. Main Motions: most important and frequent motions in parliamentary procedure.
    1. Reconsider - To require a vote of the body to re-examine a previous decision.
    2. Rescind - To reverse a motion.
    3. Resume Consideration - To un-table.
    II. Subsidiary Motions: Affect the main motion, and may hasten or delay its consideration.
    1. Postpone Temporarily - To table a motion for designated amount of time.
    2. Close Debate - To indefinitely limit time for debate.
    3. Limit Debate - To restrict a designated debate period.
    4. Postpone Indefinitely - To permanently table.
    5. Refer to a Committee - To send a motion on return to a lower committee for review and process.
    6. Amend - To alter a motion.
    III. Privileged Motions: These motions have no indirect action, they are cause for immediate consideration.
    1. Adjourn - To close a meeting.
    2. Recess - To temporarily break from meeting for a designated time.
    3. Question of Privilege - To ask for immediate clarification before the body.
    IV. Incidental Motions: These motions relate to the incidental conduct of the meeting. They either the senates consensus (*) or are at the discretion of the Chair.
    1. Appeal from a decision of the chair - Chair to grant a case suspension of rules for one member.*
    2. Consider Informally - To be granted at discretion the body.*
    3. Suspend the Rules - To halt order in favor of pending understanding or consideration.*
    4. Point of Order - Used by a member to signify that another member is out of order.
    5. Parliamentary inquiry - The body questions the presiding officer for clarification.
    6. Withdrawal of a motion - A member may, at any point, rescind their motion.
    7. Division of a question - To refer to source for clarification and agree by vote.
    8. Division of the assembly - To require a numeric vote of the body for the purpose of clarifying a vote.

    Order of Precedence - The order of precedence is the priority which motions are given in a discussion.

    Privileged motions
    I. Adjourn
    II. Recess
    III. Question of Privilege

    Subsidiary motions
    IV. Postpone Temporarily, or Table
    V. Close Debate
    VI. Limit Debate
    VII. Postpone Indefinitely
    VIII. Refer to Committee
    IX. Amend

    Main motions
    X. The main motions and specific main motions

    Agenda Format

    I. Roll Call
    II. Public Forum
    III. ASUW Presidential Privilege
    IV. Chairs Report
    V. Board of Directors Report
    VI. Standing Committee Reports
    A. Academic Affairs
    B. Campus Life
    C. Membership
    D. Faculty/Administrative Affairs
    E. Projects
    VII. ASUW Liaison Reports
    A. Arts and Entertainment
    B. Crime Prevention
    C. Finance and Budget
    D. Judicial
    E. Legislative Steering
    F. Personnel
    G. Publicity and Programming
    H. Etc...
    VIII. Orders of the Day
    A. New Business
    B. Old Business
    IX. Announcements
    X. Adjournment

    Legislation

    This section will help you understand how to write legislation. Legislation provides a concrete foundation for actions and effectiveness. We are defined by our legislative actions, and as senators, the responsibility for those actions is ours.

    Three types of legislation come through the Senate: Resolutions, Organic Acts, and Senate Bills.

    Resolutions: Resolutions are the most common type of legislation in the Student Senate. If any of your friends are curious about what the Senate does, explaining the importance that resolutions have would give them a basic understanding. The American Heritage Dictionary defines a resolution as a formal statement of a decision or expression of opinion put before or adopted by an assembly such as the US Congress.

    To the ASUW Student Senate, a resolution is what the students as a whole have resolved or decided. When you hear the phrase official student opinion in the ASUW or on the UW campus, it is referring to a Senate resolution, as all statements of student opinion must originate in the Senate. If a resolution passes through the Student Senate, it in its entirety is intended to be an official statement of what the students think. The below is the process for passing a resolution:

    Standing Committee: Ideally, a resolution should originate in a Senate Standing Committee that deals with the topic of the resolution. At times a resolution will come from outside of the Senate, in which case the Steering Committee will refer it to the most appropriate standing committee. The standing committee can amend the resolution or pass it unchanged. If a majority of the committee members think that the resolution is too poorly written, and the author is not at the committee meeting clarifying their intent, the committee can vote to kill the resolution.
    Steering Committee: After the standing committee has thoroughly researched the resolution and examined its merits, they refer it to the Steering Committee to be placed on an upcoming senate agenda. Typically it will appear the following week on first readings.
    Senate Floor: During first readings the author present the resolution to the body of the Senate and answer questions pertaining to the meaning of the resolution that Senators or gallery members have. After the Senate is satisfied that they understand the purpose of the resolution, someone will make a motion to close debate, and first readings will end. Typically the resolution will appear on second readings the following meeting after senators have had a chance to introduce the idea to their constituencies. At the Senate meeting when the resolution appears on second readings, debate begins. Second readings is when senators can offer amendments to the text, or make motions the alter the normal path of the resolution. After a motion to end debate has been successful, the resolution will be voted on. If the resolution is approved by a majority vote, it stands as the official student opinion unless rejected by the Board of Directors.

    Organic Acts: Organic Acts are similar to resolutions in the procedure that they go through. The key difference between resolutions and Organic Acts is that an Organic Act is internal to the Senate and only affects the senate. The most common use for an Organic Act is to modify the Senate Rules.

    Senate Bills: Senate Bills follow the same process as resolutions and Organic Acts. The difference is that Senate Bills are used to recommend changes that cannot be made without the approval of the Board of Directors. Common uses for Senate Bills include policy recommendations and amendments to the Senate Bylaws (such as the addition of new seats to the Senate). Senate Bills recommending an ASUW policy change are strongest when paired with a resolution supporting the intentions of the policy.

    How to Write a Crummy Resolution

    Below is a sarcastic example of how NOT to write a senate resolution

    Research: Avoid it like the plague. Nothing can make a resolution more deliciously putrid than lazy authors. Facts are no object. Past resolutions on the same topic are really of no consequence. Current policies and practices of the University shouldnt sway you in the slightest as you compose your piece of legislative garbage.

    Youve passed Senior English at Podunk High School, so theres really no need to cite the sources of your facts. Do you really think anyone is going to check up on your research anyway? Just because other resolutions have been slashed open on the floor of the Senate and at the board level doesnt mean that yours will be. Oh, and if you do choose to attribute a certain morsel of your earth-shattering resolution to some source, its always a fun trick to misquote it in the final form of the resolution. Be sure to put in your own opinion as if it were fact to keep people on their toes. If you need any tutoring on this type of bibliography, please follow the lead of the local campus publications.

    Dilution: The best way to ruin not only your own resolution, but all of the resolutions to come out of the Senate is to churn out a stack of resolutions that dont have much substance to them. Even if what you would like to accomplish could be obtained by means other than a resolution, write one just for fun. At least you can get your name on something that the whole Senate will see. With some luck you will be able to ensure that when a substantive resolution that could actually affect the students comes along, it will be lost among resolutions on the shooting down of Libyan jet fighters, welcoming obscure religious figures to campus, countless conflicting ones on the same topic pumped out by different authors during the year.

    Form: Be a rebel. Whats the use of confining yourself to an accepted format in drafting a formal piece of legislation? Not only do you want to omit substance from your writing, but you also want to place it on the page in a way thats sure to confuse people. By all means, dont compare what youve written to the sample resolution found in this packet. Grammar and syntax-- arent those a little bit outdated anyway? Dont we have enough taxes without levying against our indulgences?

    Protocol: Im late but Im important enough to bend the rules! Wait until the last conceivable minute before trying to shove your proposal through the beast of bureaucracy. Not only will you effectively hamper thorough and thoughtful discussion on the topic, but you can anger and fluster people as well. Whine, scream, cry, do whatever it takes to entreat others into believing that your resolution is timely enough to suspend the rules.

    It is also in your best interest to avoid getting others to contribute their ideas, consulting with advisors or administrators who might know something about what language needs to be in the resolution to make it fly, or doing any serious hashing out of the issues that are central to your resolution. By all means, please dont let the appropriate standing committee go over it in detail. Committee members are perhaps the worst people to help you do additional research. Since your resolution is supposedly an official statement of student opinion, perhaps the most excellent way to thwart the process is to keep your views and opinions not reflective of what the majority of your peers really think.

    Presentation: When it comes time to present your resolution, waste no time in letting people know just how horrible your resolution is. A wonderful way to lost the confidence of the Senate is to make excuses. Be sure to use emotion and political manipulation instead of sound reasoning to sway the body of the Senate to your side of the issue.

    In the event that your resolution does not pass the Senate, all is not lost--you still have the opportunity to show what youre made of by being a sore loser. The number of techniques of this are nearly endless. You can whine, cry, move to reconsider the next week, pull some sneaky parliamentary tricks, slander others through the campus press, or even appeal to the BOD. Be creative. Nobody takes this stuff very seriously anyway.

    Follow-up: If youve followed all of the suggestions in here to a T, and the Senate was still silly enough to pass it, you still have a chance to make it the poorest resolution in recent history. Just sit back and watch it happen. All of that research and discussion can go to waste. If no one sends any copies of the resolution to the proper administrators, community groups, or others who were to be swayed by this official statement of student opinion, it will do absolutely no good, but will still be a terrific waste of paper. Also, a little improper filing and storage of your paperwork can go a long way toward helping people forget your resolution ever happened.

    Sample Resolution

    Below is an example of a well researched, thorough, and structurally sound resolution

    Associated Students of the University of Washington
    Student Senate
    First Regular Session

    R 1-4
    February 13, 1995
    Claire Beehler
    John Linder
    Jasper MacSlarrow

    A RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF THE PROPOSED UNIVERSITY CENTER FOR UNDERGRADUATE EDUCATION:

    WHEREAS, in June of 1994, the Presidents Task Force report was published recommending that an Undergraduate College be implemented (1),

    WHEREAS, the Center for Undergraduate Education will unify an unorganized undergraduate educational experience (2),

    WHEREAS, the University of Washington has approximately ten thousand pre-majors (3),

    WHEREAS, the Center for Undergraduate Education will house all pre-majors (4),

    WHEREAS, the Center for Undergraduate Education will provide a foundation for improvement of the quality of undergraduate education, course access, and undergraduate advising (5),

    WHEREAS, recent budget cuts have forced the University to be more efficient with resources for undergraduate education,

    WHEREAS, the ASUW as a vested interest in solving the problems of undergraduate education,

    BE IT RESOLVED BY THE ASSOCIATED STUDENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON:

    THAT, the ASUW support the implementation of the proposed University Undergraduate College, with the name changed to the Center for Undergraduate Education,

    THAT, the ASUW support the creation of an Advisory Committee to advise the Dean of Undergraduate Education. There shall be six student members on the Center for Undergraduate Education Advisory Council. They shall consist of the following: the ASUW President or proxy, one Board of Directors member, two representatives of the ASUW Student Senate, and two representatives of the ASUW Governance Committee.

    THAT, the ASUW take an active role in the promotion, securement, and implementation of the Center for Undergraduate Education.

    (1) Presidents Task Force Report, June 1994

    (2) Document entitled, Organization of Proposed University Undergraduate College, 12/23/94

    (3) Document entitled, University of Washington Statistical Report for Autumn Quarter 1993

    (4) Document entitled, The Proposed University Undergraduate College

    (5) Interview with Dean Campbell on February 3, 1995

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