Filibuster blocks election revisions
Bob Ennis, graduate representative, launched a filibuster at the ASSC Council meeting yesterday and stopped adoption of election code revisions until after the campaigning for ASSC offices starts Monday.
Ennis said that he will continue the filibuster until two-thirds of the members of the council come to him personally and say they will support submission to the student body of an amendment to change the number of graduate representatives from four to five.
Pat Lawless, the elections commissioner, said that Ennis’ action will make it easier to invalidate the elections.
“We can get into the same mess we had last year when the elections were invalidated and had to be repeated.” he said.
"The elections will go on but it is stupid not to have this revised election code.” Lawless added. “The students and the council want these revisions. This is a good example of irresponsible government.”
Ron McDuffie, senior class representative, accused Ennis of trying to bribe the council members into passing his motion and then left. The meeting was shortly adjourned for a lack of a quorum.
The council, while adjourned into the committee of the whole, had approved by a straw vote all but one of the revisions proposed by McDuffie.
Among the revisions recently opposed was a proposal to rescind the motion passed at last week’s council meeting that all members of the news media must temporarily quit their positions if they run for ASSC office.
This motion was passed after Bill Dicke, SoCal editor, told the council the steps the Daily Trojan was taking to insure fair election coverage.
Ennis said that he was not opposed to the elections code revisions but that the council was not representative of the student body because 62 percent of the student body is made up of graduate students.
Earlier in the meeting Ennis had moved that the number of graduate student representatives be increased, but the motion was defeated 8-5.
Several members of the council said that graduate students in the past hadn’t seemed interested in student government and suggested that the motions be delayed until the council could see how many graduate students
turned out to vote for graduate representative.
Last week the council voted to change the post of graduate representative from an appointed to elected office.
Ennis said that it was nonsense that graduate students aren’t interested in student government. Besides, he said, it was not a matter of who is interested, but that more than half of ASSC funds are provided by graduate students.
The council did pass unanimously the appointment of Dan Smith as executive director of the Community Action Coordinating Council. Smith, a freshman in pre-med, was nominated for the post by Jim Blackstock. vice president for programs.
Also, the council unanimously adopted a motion by Suzanne DuBall, vice president of academic affairs, to form a joint committee on governance. The committee will investigate what power students have in university government and evaluate the structure and functions of student government.
The next council meeting is scheduled for 3 p.m. Tuesday.
University of Southern California
DAILY ® TROJAN
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, WEDNESDAY. MARCH 5, 1969, VOL. LX, NO. 83
Rosenzweig runs for top ASSC office
Joel Rosenzweig. candidate for ASSC president, said yesterday that he plans to campaign in three areas: student government, the academic community and the urban community.
Rosenzweig said students have been labeled apathetic because student government in the past has been irrelevant to student needs and interests and because it has failed to unite students in action.
Student government could change this apathetic mood, said Rosenzweig, by creating more of an atmosphere of student life on campus.
He proposed that this be done by providing better entertainment and better services on campus.
By coordinating all entertainment committees under one entertainment commissioner and by pooling funds, big-name entertainment could be brought to the USC campus, said Rosenzweig.
Rosenzweig also favors launching an investigation of prices at the University Bookstore and the student Grill and is considering the possibility of starting a student co-operative store.
In order for student government to become more relevant and more responsive to the entire student body, Rosenzweig proposed that the ASSC president hold bi-monthly press conferences and weekly coffee hours at varying locations on campus, in order to hear the opinions of a cross-section of USC students.
He also feels that the ASSC president should establish a commission to poll student opinions—to find out what students want and what actions taken by the ASSC dissatisfy them.
Concerning USC’s involvement with the urban community, Rosenzweig said that there needs to be redirection of community-oriented activities.
For example, Rosenzweig suggested that a program of teacher aids at 32nd Street School replace the present Tutorial Project, which he feels is ineffectual.
He also recommended getting people on the Row involved in community action.
Dan Smith, newly appointed head of the Community Action Coordinating Council asked Rosenzweig about the possibility of the new student government allocating more funds for use by the group. Rosenzweig replied that he favored an increase in funds for the project. He also said that the student government could help the community financially by persuading the alumni to provide Green Power and to help start industry in the urban community.
Rosenzweig wants to better the academic community at USC in a number of different ways.
“With our tradition and Trojan pride, and by borrowing such ideas as the co-op system used at the University of Oregon, the Student Life Committee at Stanford, the lecture series at Cal State and the entertainment activities at UCLA we could create such an academic community,” said Rosenzweig. “Then students would be proud to go here.”
JOEL ROSENZWEIG
FRED MINNES
SIX SEEK TO HEAD STUDENTS
Six men had filed for ASSC president by the 4 p.m. deadline yesterday but there was one other who announced his write-in candidacy. There were no candidates for three offices.
Filing for president were Michael Guarino, James Helfrich, Edward Hurst, Ronald McDuffie, Frederick Minnes and Joel Rosenzweig. Eric Cohen, who had announced his candidacy last semester, said he would run as a write-in.
Of the 12 ASSC offices to be filled in the upcoming elections, those without candidates are Associated Men Students vice-president, senior class president, and foreign student representative. However, as with all the offices, write-in candidates who abide by the election rules are eligible for the positions.
There will be two rounds of voting—primaries and run-offs. The primaries, to be held on March 18 and 19 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., will narrow the field in each contest to two candidates. Primary votes will be final for those candidates getting more than half the votes cast. Otherwise, the offices will be filled in the run-offs to be held on March 26 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Those filing for other offices;
ASSC vice-president, programs—Stuart Bloom, Bert Rebeaudand Sandra Sorenson.
ASSC vice-president, academics—Mark Savit.
Associated Men Students president—Charles Jones and Tom Levyn.
Associated Women Students president—Donna DeDiemar.
Associated Women Students vice-president—Sue Semple.
Senior class representative—Robert Barr and Robert Brooks.
Junior class representative—Dave Dizenfeld, Robert Kaufman and Steven Ogle.
Sophomore class representative—Frederick Cox, Ronald Palmieri, James Stephen, Jordan Kerner, Jeffrey Ullman and Patrick Nolan.
The freshman representative will be elected next fall.
BLUES CONCERT TODAY
A rock group called the Fields, specializing in the new English blues, will perform today at noon on the patio of the Student Activities Center.
This is the fourth in a series of free noon concerts jointly sponsored by Jim Gross and the ASSC Entertainment Committee.
Minnes files for ASSC presidency
Fred Minnes, president of the Associated Men Students, announced his candidacy for ASSC president yesterday.
“Students should have an opportunity to participate fully in the formulation of all policies and rules pertaining to student conduct, and in the enforcement of all such rules." Minnes said in an interview.
Minnes, a junior majoring in psychology with a 3.25 GPA, listed among his qualifications Men’s Halls Association president. Dean’s List, ASSC Budgetary subcommittee and Beta Theta Phi house judicial.
Minnes said he bases his qualifications for the office on three years of participation in student government, which have given him a familiarity with the job.
“Our student government must act as a responsible, progressive force if we are to avoid the disruptions which, currently afflict college campuses across the nation,” he said.
“Rational student leaders, responding to the needs of the students, must impress upon the university the need for change—immediate change.
“I believe the ASSC should concern itself solely with the problems that beset USC and its students. I’m not going to campaign on national or international issues, just on campus issues, since there are enough problems here that need the attention of our elected leaders.
“The ASSC should be rational, responsible and responsive. Only when those criteria are accomplished will student government gain the respect it so vitally needs.”
Minnes’ platform is divided into five sections—philosophy of student government, problem-solving, academic affairs, student life and community involvement.
Under problem-solving, Minnes calls for the establishment of a presidential steering committee, which would delineate problem areas and recommend priorities to the ASSC Executive Council. He also advocates the establishment of a standing committee of the University Senate, with student membership, to identify institutional problems.
In the academic affairs section, he recommends a readjustment of financial priorities, placing more emphasis on faculty salaries, the library system and the improvement of classroom education. His platform also suggests that each school or department in the university organize a student-faculty committee to discuss educational problems, and the initiation of a comprehensive teacher and course evaluation for curriculum and promotion committees.
“Living groups should definitely be able to determine for themselves what policies they wish to pursue concerning visitation, lock-out and drinking,” Minnes said.