Graduate Student Senate is moving forward with a resolution to boycott presidential and university committees.
Graduate Student Senate chose to move forward with a previously-tabled resolution to boycott presidential committees until Ohio University President Roderick McDavis attends a GSS general assembly meeting.
Along with passing four additional resolutions, the GSS cleared the boycott resolution with a 13-9 vote, firmly establishing a Nov. 16 deadline for McDavis to attend a GSS meeting in person. If the demands are not met, GSS members will effectively withdraw from presidential and university committees.
“If President McDavis doesn’t attend the November meeting, the boycott will go into effect until he attends a GSS meeting.” Sarah Kaplan, GSS vice president of communication, said. “I do think there are a ton of issues that connect graduate students that aren’t gaining awareness that we need, and this might help with that.”
Monday’s meeting agenda included an email from OU Presidential Assistant Kelli Tackett, inviting members of the executive council to participate in a closed-door meeting on Nov. 18 with McDavis. Tackett also said Executive Vice President and Provost Pam Benoit and Joseph Shields, dean of OU’s Graduate College would attend the meeting.
{{tncms-asset app="editorial" id="e56bd686-60d7-11e5-b6de-4b0642acbc3b"}}
Despite an acknowledgment from the presidential office, GSS President Carl Edward Smith III does not feel that the non-disclosure policy of closed-door meetings would allow graduate students the chance to express their concerns.
“(McDavis) asked me that last term, back in May, and I said 'No.' ” Smith said. “I think all of you should get the chance to ask your questions, and your fellow graduate students have the right to ask their questions.”
Even so, the next GSS meeting is not scheduled to take place until Nov. 16, two days before the suggested meeting date of Nov. 18.
GSS also passed a resolution to appoint and finance a graduate employment public awareness campaign director, choosing Shehzad Ahmed, chair of the Graduate Student Workers Party, to fill the position.
During Monday’s meeting, Ahmed described his exchange with McDavis during the Oct. 7 undergraduate Student Senate meeting, during which he invited the university president to attend the October GSS meeting.
“Graduate students would love to hear the president of their university tell us how he feels about where graduate students are, about why we’re paying this general fee, etc.” Ahmed said. “The point that I’m trying to make it that McDavis doesn’t listen to us. We asked him nicely, we sent him emails. I’ve even barged into the Student Senate Meeting … and still he refuses to show up.”
Ahmed has expressed frustration with graduate student compensation in the past, chiefly questioning the $500 per semester general fee and the $800 average health insurance charge, according to a previous Post report.
The meeting began with a presentation from Yuli Hu, a Ph.D. student studying plant biology, who approached the assembly with a list of issues brought forth by the students in her department, among them being stipends, the general fee and insurance fees for graduate students.
“Each week, we spend over 20 hours on (teaching assistant) work, and for us, the labs are set in between lunchtime from 12 to 2 in our department," Hu said. "The TA work is very hard and difficult. We usually have no time or energy to workout. We are living a stressful life, and we think that health comes first.”
@lauren__fisher
