After a dramatic session, Student Senate adjourned for the semester with a completed referendum, uncertainty as to the future compensation for senators and Curtis Ferguson resigning in indignation Sunday.

Some students in attendance said they were confused by the referendum question that asked, “Would you be in favor of a policy in your Oberlin College Student Health Insurance wherein you could choose to redirect any of your insurance money that went towards abortion procedures and put it towards pre- and post-natal care?” Senate opened discussion on voiding the results when many said that the phrasing caused students to vote differently than they intended.

Ferguson proposed tabling discussion on the question until junior Oberlin Pro-Life Union of Students co-chair Rick Hoffman, who submitted the question, could be consulted. Students in attendance asked why Senate should contact Hoffman and not members of Oberlin Students United for Reproductive Freedom.

Senator Vorris Mayes said the vote should stand.

“It’s not our job to consult all students,” Mayes said. “But we should own up to writing a bad question and not remove it.”

Ferguson phoned Hoffman from the meeting after the proposal was rejected. Hoffman arrived just in time to witness the vote striking his question from the record.

“If people didn’t understand the question, they could have abstained,” Hoffman said.

“This was shady voting,” Ferguson said. “We just silenced someone who came to the room. I heard that people were confused by the gender neutral or constitution question, but we aren’t striking them. It was a poorly written question, but we have to take responsibility for it.”

Senator Oona O’Leary, who drafted the question, said in hindsight she understood how it could confuse students.

Senior Rebecca DeCola voiced frustration at senate not offering pro and con arguments for the question, which she said could have helped explain the question better.

According to senate, arguments were written, but were excluded.

Senate voted to reopen discussion on the question and then voted again to strike it.

Senate’s constitution does not provide a set process for drafting referendum questions and reacting to their results.

Senator Matt Kaplan said several questions were poorly worded and that Senate could have contacted people who proposed them earlier in the process.

“Why were they not called and invited to attend Senate meeting?” Kaplan asked. “Poor communication leads to silenced voices and disorganization which in turn leads to ambiguous questions.”

“Our processes for writing referendum questions should proactively welcome all students and their opinions,” Kaplan said. “It is unfair to the students and groups on campus to have questions written at the last minute, questions being struck and results being hidden.”

Ferguson said he plans to start a coalition called Students Against Student Senate to educate students about Senate and make Senate more accountable to students. Ferguson said he would eventually like his new group to help pick students to run for Senate.

Kaplan said Ferguson’s resignation was a loss.

“Curtis Ferguson provided an engaged mind, a true interest and tremendous insight,” Kaplan said. “His presence will be sorely missed.”
Votes in favor of divestment from companies that contract with the Israeli military squeaked past those opposed by two votes, but Senate will take no action because a majority of students abstained.

DeCola, a member of Students for a Free Palestine, said the results were still a big victory.

“I don’t think that abstention necessarily means there should be a lack of action,” DeCola said. “I hope in the future students are better informed about what it means to abstain.”

SFP has sent press releases about the referendum results to major media sources such as The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Guardian, as well as local and independent media and Palestinian and Jewish groups around the country.

Students approved asking the College to disclose a more detailed version of its operating budget by more than 1,000 votes.

A majority of students voted against paying student senators. Senators are currently paid, but those elected next year won’t be and it is not yet determined whether currently serving senators will be paid through the rest of their term.

“Senators were paid so that work-study students could participate,” senator Andrea Leung said.

Kaplan said he believes senators should be paid, but that he would finish his term regardless of compensation.

“It is imperative Senate be comprised of many different voices, colors, religions and socioeconomic backgrounds,” Kaplan said. “Our diversity is our strength and our strength is our diversity, and we need to provide equal opportunities for students who are not as financially affluent.”

Ferguson agreed that senators should be paid, but said senate should respect students’ wishes and work without pay.

“Students don’t think they should be paid because they don’t think [Senate] represents them,” Ferguson said. “Next year they should have a better referendum which can include a question about payment.”

Acting Dean of Students Bill Stackman said that not paying senators would not necessarily be a major problem.

“I’ve seen highly effective students and student governments prior to having paid positions,” Stackman said. “Student senators weren’t paid when I first got here. [Senate] was still a very diverse group representing various groups of students on campus. However, making Senate a paid position allowed those who did need to work to serve.”

Stackman said students serving in other demanding organizations were not paid, either.

“Judicial Board, Student Union Board and ABUSUA, for instance, all demand a lot of time,” Stackman said. “But we’re still able to find a variety of students.”

A large majority of students demanded Science Center hours be extended past 11 p.m. Students voted against building more housing and increasing Oberlin Student Cooperative Association fees at the same rate as students in dorms. Students voted overwhelmingly in support of allowing every student to live off campus after living on campus for four semesters and in favor of making all dorms except Baldwin gender neutral.

The survey question about students’ positions on abortion returned a broad array of opinions.

After senators heard that students, some students attendance, were confused by the referendum question asking, “Would you be in favor of a policy in your Oberlin College Student Health Insurance wherein you could choose to redirect any of your insurance money that went towards abortion procedures and put it towards pre- and post-natal care?” Senate opened discussion on voiding the results when many said that the phrasing caused students to vote differently than they intended.

Ferguson proposed tabling discussion on the question until Junior Oberlin Pro-Life Union of Students co-chair Rick Hoffman, who submitted the question, could be consulted. Students in attendance asked why Senate should contact Hoffman and not members of Oberlin Students United for Reproductive Freedom. Senator Vorris Mayes said the vote should stand.
“It’s not our job to consult all students,” Mayes said. “But we should own up to writing a bad question and not remove it.”

Ferguson called Hoffman from the meeting after the proposal was rejected. Hoffman arrived just in time to witness the vote striking his question from the record.
“If people didn’t understand the question, they could have abstained,” Hoffman said.
“This was shady voting,” Ferguson said. “We just silenced someone who came to the room. I heard that people were confused by the gender neutral or constitution question, but we aren’t striking them. It was a poorly written question, but we have to take responsibility for it.”

Senator Oona O’Leary, who drafted the question, said in hindsight she understood how it could confuse students.

Senior Rebecca DeCola voiced frustration at Senate not offering pro and con arguments for the question, which she said could have helped explain the question better. According to Senate, arguments were written, but were excluded.

Senate voted to reopen discussion on the question, and then voted again to strike it.

Senate’s constitution does not provide a set process for drafting referendum questions and reacting to their results.

Senator Matt Kaplan said several questions were poorly worded, and that Senate could have contacted people who proposed them earlier in the process.

“Why were they not called and invited to attend Senate meetings,” Kaplan said. “Poor communication leads to silenced voices and disorganization which in turn leads to ambiguous questions.”
“Our processes for writing for writing referendum questions should proactively welcome all students and their opinions,” Kaplan said. “It is unfair to the students and groups on campus to have questions written at the last minute, questions being struck, and results being hidden.”

Ferguson said he plans to start a coalition called Students Against Student Senate (Action) to educate students about Senate and make Senate more accountable to students. Ferguson said he would like his new group to eventually help pick students to run for Senate.

Kaplan said Ferguson’s resignation was a big loss.

“Curtis Ferguson provided an engaged mind, a true interest and tremendous insight,” Kaplan said. “His presence will be sorely missed.”

Votes in favor of divestment from companies that contract with the Israeli military squeaked past those opposed by two votes, but Senate will take no action because a majority of students abstained.
DeCola, a member of Students for a Free Palestine, said the results were still a big victory.

“I don’t think that abstention necessarily means there should be a lack of action,” DeCola said. “I hope in the future students are better informed about what it means to abstain.”

SFP member Lina Elbadawi said that SFP has sent press releases about the referendum results to major media sources such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Guardian, as well as local and independent media and Palestinian and Jewish groups around the country.
Students approved asking the College to disclose a more detailed version of its operating budget by more than 1000 votes.

A majority of students voted against paying student senators. Senators are currently paid, but those elected next year won’t be, and it is not yet determined whether currently serving senators will be paid through the rest of their term.
“Senators were paid so that work-study students could participate,” Senator Andrea Leung said.

Kaplan said he believes senators should be paid, but that he would finish his term regardless of compensation.

“It is imperative Senate be comprised of many different voices, colors, religions, and socioeconomic backgrounds,” Kaplan said. “Our diversity is our strength and our strength is our diversity and we need to provide equal opportunities for students who are not as financially affluent.”

Ferguson agreed that senators should be paid, but said Senate should respect students’ wishes and work without pay.

“Students don’t think they should be paid because they don’t think [Senate] represents them,” Ferguson said. “Next year they should have a better referendum which can include a question about payment.”
Acting Dean of Students Bill Stackman said that not paying senators would not necessarily be a big problem.
“I’ve seen highly effective students and student governments prior to having paid positions,” Stackman said. “Student senators weren’t paid when I first got here. [Senate] was still a very diverse group representing various groups of students on campus. However, making Senate a paid position allowed those who did need to work to serve.”

Stackman said students serving in other demanding organizations were not paid either.
“Judicial Board, Student Union Board, and ABUSUA, for instance, all demand a lot of time,” Stackman said. “But we’re still able to find a variety of students.”

A large majority of students demanded Science Center hours be extended past 11 p.m. Students voted against building more housing and increasing Oberlin Student Cooperative Association fees at the same rate as students in dorms. Students voted overwhelmingly in support of allowing every student to live off campus after living on campus for four semesters, and in favor of making all dorms except Baldwin gender neutral. The survey question about students’ position on abortion returned a broad array of opinions.