SEO: Senate Executive Committee discusses graduate parking Senate Executive Committee votes to send back CTACs proposal

SEC suggests solutions for CTACs proposal By: Rachele Reyes The University of Marylands Senate Executive Committee met Wednesday, March 13 at 2 p.m. to review nine proposals that seek action from the University Senate. Chair of the Senate, Martha Nell Smith, introduced the first proposal on the committees agenda: The Campus Transportation Advisory Committee proposed that the University Senate implement a change in the parking restrictions for graduate students during athletic games at home. The 18 members of the SEC reviewed CTACs proposal and decided to send their opinions and suggestions on the proposal back to CTAC for confirmation. Once CTAC confirms these opinions and suggestions, the SEC will review the proposal again. Director of the University Senate and executive secretary of the SEC, Reka Montfort, explained CTACs proposal in more detail. CTAC proposes a change in the parking restrictions during football and basketball home games by allowing graduate students to leave their cars in their parking lots instead of move them, Montfort said. The University Senate meets once a month during the fall and spring semesters. Photo credit: University of Maryland Senate

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Reyes. SEC Mainbar. 2 SEC members voice opinions Matthew Popkin, an undergraduate student on the SEC, questioned CTACs proposal. DOTS always provides alternatives for students who cannot move their cars due to conflicts in their schedules, Popkin said. DOTS was not getting enough complaints, so they never thought about changing their policy. Days before a home game, DOTS alerts students with a vehicle on campus to move it to a specific lot three hours before the game. Failure to move the vehicle results in a $75 fine. Dorothy Beckett, a faculty member on the committee, said that DOTS should provide other alternatives for graduate students other than the alerts. Beckett said that students waste valuable time when they have to move their vehicles.

We cant have our students wasting their valuable time on things that arent that important, such as parking.
Dorothy Beckett

Graduate lab research has to be done in the lab, Beckett said. It is quite an inconvenience when my students have to leave their lab to move their vehicle. One alternative that DOTS provides is

to give a one-day parking pass to those that have a conflict in their schedule, but the alerts do not mention this alternative.

Reyes. SEC Mainbar. 3 SEC committee member Denise Best manages all resource and travel matters within the universitys graduate school, and emphasized that graduates need more priority. Committee votes to take action After the committee shared its ideas, Martha Nell Smith presented the main idea for the committee to vote on. We will ask DOTS to enter the license plate of each graduate student into their system, Smith said. We will also ask DOTS to look into and allow graduate students to remain in their lots during all home games. The committee voted to confirm this suggestion with CTAC, and spent most of the meeting on this proposal to help graduate students with any future parking complaints that they may have. ###

SEO: Volunteers needed for UMDs Senate Committee University Senate Committee seeks volunteers
Students needed for 2013-2014 school year By: Rachele Reyes The University Senate is a powerful governing body at the university that votes on ideas and proposals from the universitys community. Director of the University Senate, Reka Montfort, says that the committees recently proposed new faculty and staff parental leave policies and developed a process for making class syllabi available during course registration. The University Senate Committee is now looking for volunteers for the 2013-2014 school year. To volunteer for a committee, visit http://www.senate.umd.edu/ to fill out a committee preference form. The form will be available March 25, 2013, and all prospective volunteers should submit their forms by April 19, 2013. The new members of the Senate committees will become more involved with the university and help to improve the universitys campus life. Faculty and staff members will serve a two-year term, and ex-officio members and all university students will serve one-year terms on committees. ### Photo credit: University of Maryland Senate

SEO: UMDs Senate Executive Committees March meeting Senate Executive Committee will meet this month
Come and hear what the SEC has to say By: Rachele Reyes The Senate Executive Committee will meet Wednesday, March 13, 2013 from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. in Marie Mount Halls Maryland Room. The SEC will decide whether nine proposals are ready for discussion and action from the University Senate. Proposals include changing student parking during events on campus, establishing a master of finance and changing the calculation of commencement honors. The SEC allows non-members to observe the meeting; however, nonmembers cannot participate in the discussions. For more information, please contact the Senate Director Reka Montfort at reka@umd.edu. ###