Student Government debates spending $1,500 for memorial bench

The TAMIU Student Government (SG) recently approved measures to put forth a new visible tradition on campus. During the open meeting of Oct. 22, the Student Senate approved Senate Bill (SB) 009, which appropriates $1,500 for one of granite benches in the Lamar Bruni Vergara (LBV) Memorial Garden. On the bench will be inscribed the names of students chosen by SG as honorary members. The first name to be etched on the votive stone belongs to Cindy Martinez. Martinez, a student and staff member for the Office of Student Activities, devoted a great deal of her time to assisting SG, going back to their summer meetings.Authored by Maritza Morris, Senator for the College of Education, and introduced to the Senate floor by Senator-at-Large Matthew Hall, SB-009 acts in part to amend and clarify the previously approved appropriation from the meeting of Oct. 15. According to the Senate minutes from Oct. 15 (approved pending minor corrections), the Senate passed an untitled, unwritten appropriation of said amount for the bench. Of the thirteen senators present, eleven approved, and two abstained. The minutes further indicate that Sen. Hall explained the Senate had previously discussed the idea of the bench and felt it would “be a good investment and tradition” which they were ready to approve. The moved caused some disagreement over procedure, according to Student Body President James Cortez, who, along with Vice President Eliezar Castañeda, expressed concerns over what they saw as hasty passage of the appropriation. “Me and Eliezar are not convinced this was the best time for the expenditure,” Cortez said on Oct. 16, adding that he hoped to have more time for SG to review its budget. Cortez elaborated on his concerns.”There was no documentation. This was all done word of mouth,” he said.Additionally, the Senate neglected to specify a procedure or criteria for selecting the honorary SG members whose names will grace the bench. Because of these concerns, Vice President Castañeda chose not to entertain the motion at the meeting, but acting Speaker of the Senate Rudolfo Morales allowed the Senate to vote. Knowing that the Senate possessed the votes to override him, Cortez explained that he considered exercising his veto power to “establish a line of respect for the vice president’s authority” and to encourage the Senate to work out the details in writing before moving forward. Cortez also alluded to ongoing negotiations between him, the vice president, and unspecified members of the Senate. The president did not, after all, veto the appropriation, and neither he nor Vice President Castañeda attended the next Senate meeting on Oct. 22. The fact that the Senate re-presented the appropriation for the bench in writing as SB-009 as well as the portion of the bill which recognizes “the need for inter-branch harmony on the establishments of such creation” suggests an amicable agreement. “We came up with the best compromise possible,” said Speaker Morales while addressing the Senate and guests at the meeting.Just before the Senate voted, Miguel Treviño, Associate Director of Student Activities and an SG advisor, suggested an amendment to the motion taking into consideration policies from the Office of Institutional Advancement regarding commemorative displays on campus. Specifically, Treviño wondered if the benches around the LBV Garden have room for ten names as desired by the Senate. Sen. Hall amended the motion to keep the number of names in accordance with Institutional Advancement. A precise number of names for the bench is no longer set in stone. Furthermore, after SB-009 hopped over two abstentions and one disapproval on its way to passage, Speaker Morales addressed the manner in which SG handled the “spirited debate.””We’ve compartmentalized this so that it does not affect our functioning,” said Morales.During the Oct. 22 meeting, the Senate discussed a number of other issues. Recounting an episode in which she helped a student in a wheelchair open the door to the new Starbucks on campus, Graduate Senator Karla Garcia suggested SG look into the bistro’s compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Sanchez School of Business Rep. Alejandra Avila brought up an ongoing discussion to build tennis courts on campus, and Sen. Hall advised SG to place somebody on the new advisory committee of the Residential Learning Community. SG holds its Senate meetings every Wednesday at noon in Student Center Room 231 unless otherwise specified. Senate meetings are open to the public.