were passed over the weekend and a record high number of delegates .

  attended in what some are calling the most important and successful conference in the associations history. Efficiency through the agenda also left a large amount of time for open forum discussion. “As a result of such great discussion and engagement, we were able to get through our agenda quickly, giving us more time to work on the campus to campus issues our members brought with them," Said Gage.

Among the resolutions was a call for campaign selection criteria to use when deciding what initiatives SAM plans to take up throughout the year, nonconference voting which allows under certain conditions an out-of-conference vote if the association must act quickly, creation of student action committees to advocate on each campus and act on behalf of the organization when necessary, and a resolution to increase membership and accountability of the Legislative Research Committee. A shared governance resolution was also introduced and passed. This resolution stated that SAM would use its resources in support of increasing student involvement in crucial decisions affecting Michigan’s students across each campus.

Another resolution was passed unanimously in opposition of House Bill 4980 .

  of the Michigan Legislature. HB 4980 .

  states that Michigan State University and Wayne State University violated the tuition restraint imposed by the state by calculating their tuition increase different than that of the state. The bill will take approximately 18 million dollars from Michigan State and approximately 13 million from Wayne State. The bill also closes some loop holes that those colleges allegedly violated. President Gage stated, "The unanimous passage of this resolution was a great way to unify the 15 campuses, and is a great step forward for Michigan students. I was happy to see that we included provisions thanking the legislature for including the restraint language in the first place, while also calling on them to end further cuts to our Universities"

SAM plans to put more of its focus on the University Affairs Committee (UAC) this year with hopes to help each university with its key issues. The first step in this direction was election of the associations UAC Chairman Eli Karttunen of Michigan Technological University .

  . Chairman Karttunen said about his position in SAM, “I look forward to setting up pin-point positions at each of the 15 public universities to focus on specific issues that may be facing students on one campus that will affect us all. Together, we can come together through the UAC to make certain that students are being represented fairly and treated with dignity by the respective administrations across the state.” SAM’s plans do not include a laze on legislation.

Derek Moretz, LRC Chairman, and his newly elected committee will begin to put more pressure on Lansing and Legislation, while keeping the students of Michigan highly informed. Of the first conference, Gage said, "It’s always rewarding to hear ideas from campus leaders from across the state, and I was pleasantly surprised to see the caliber of the delegates sent by our member schools.

For Links to the documents, click here:

Executive Order.

 

Campaign Selection Criteria and Resolutions passed.

 

Roster of Delegate Attendance .

 

Press Release- Opposition to House Bill 4980 .

 

UAC Chairman Eli Karttunen of Michigan Technological University .

 

 
Posted by 10/4/2011 10:00 PM