BUS speaks out about seat removal in Allocation Committee

Jackie Valley

Black United Students kept the battle alive for the proposed permanent seat removal in the Allocation Committee Friday during the committee’s ad hoc process.

Last week, Sean Groves, business and finance senator, proposed eliminating the three permanent seats currently held by the All Campus Programming Board, Inter-Greek Programming Board and BUS on the Allocation Committee.

In addition, only one member of a student organization’s executive board would be allowed to serve on the committee.

Carla Smith, Allocation Committee member representing BUS, said the group’s opposition to its seat removal comes down to three main issues: the group’s history, number of members and equal representation of minority students.

“I don’t think when you are trying to create a diverse committee it’s a good idea to shrink the committee rather than expand,” she said.

Committee member Justin Peeples said the committee still needs to explore the history of the permanent seats before coming to conclusions.

“If you don’t know why these positions are here, you don’t know the effects of removing them,” he said.

Judy Ripple, business manager for the Center for Student Involvement who oversees the meetings, said BUS was granted a permanent seat on the Allocation Committee in 1999 during the Fall semester.

In other business, Groves said that any changes made in ad hoc regarding ACPB will be part of an ongoing transition if the proposed reorganization of ACPB in the new Undergraduate Student Government occurs.

The committee also allocated $90 in gas money to the Kent State Feminist Union for its trip to the Reproductive Rights Conference at Hampshire College in Amherst, Massachusetts.

The remaining Allocation Committee budget is $14,878. The committee will hear another funding request next Friday before it continues the ad hoc process.

Contact student politics reporter Jackie Valley at [email protected].