4
TI he CI ac I< amas P rìnt
Wednesday, April 21, 1999
Associated Students’ Constitution up for review
Student Government
seeks to become more
responsive, accessible
to students
ROBERT SCHOENBERG
News Editor
A step towards convening a
constitutional convention was
taken Monday night at the weekly
ASG meeting.
The representatives in atten
dance voted to form a Constitu
tional Review Committee that will
consist of nine students from the
campus as well as a Chair, or head
of the committee.
It was voted that the Chair of the
Constitutional Convention Com
mittee would be ASG President
David Ledoux and that when his
term is over at the end of this
school year in June, the Vice-Chair,
who has not.yet been picked, will
become the Chair.
LeDoux said that any student
interested on joining the commit
tee should stop in at the ASG of
fice and see him.
The committee was formed by a
vote of 12-4. The same proposal
was defeated, 7-14, at last week’s
ASG Monday meeting.
“I think some people were con
fused about the process and the
purpose of the convention. After
a week of discussion people be
came more comfortable with what
was going on,” said LeDoux.
The Constitution is available in
the ASG office to students inter
ested in reading it. The document
was last amended and approved
on May 8,1995.
In a memo that LeDoux released
last week after the April 12 meet
ing, he said that some students
were concerned about adequate
representation of students by the
ASG and that “there is not a clear
understanding of what student
government is and how constitu
ents can use it as a medium of in
formation, service, and/or get in
volved in it themselves.”
Legislative Officer Christine
Reed, Childcare Senator Jennifer
Rankin and Student Access Sena
tor Saida Johnston were some of
the students expressing concern
about student representation in the
ASG.
They have been debating these
issues as well as ideas about the
Federal, State and Associated Stu
dents' Constitutions in Political
Science Instructor Dean Darris’
class this term. The debates have
involved students within and out
side of student government.
“There’s so many great ideas out
there and... so many people in the
Political Science Dept, that under
stand the Constitution in depth,”
said Rankin.
Darris confirmed that after dis
cussion of constitutions students
became interested in reviewing the
ASG Constitution.
Darris said that the process of
analysis and evaluation of a con
stitution and amending the docu
ment is a normal function of a demo
cratic government. Every constitu
tion should be looked at carefully
from time to time in the interest of
the people that it concerns.
Johnston suggested that the
ASG Constitution be made avail
able at the ASG office for any stu
dent interested in knowing what it
contained.
“If the student sees anything
that they would like to improve or
change, if they would just give us
some feedback and give it to any
Phi Theta Kappa garners awards at convention
STEFANIE SMITH
StaffWriter
Clackamas’ chapter of Phi Theta
Kappa attended the Oregon Re
gion Convention in Springfield
Oregon on Sat. March 27, and re
ceived numerous awards.
The Alpha Xi Zeta chapter re
ceived 12 total awards. Eight stu
dents received participation certifi
cates, including: Hillary Wootan of
Colton; Jennifer Cameron and
Chris Sparrows of Estacada; Jan
Baer and Lynn Brown of.
Milwaukie; Stacie Harp of Molalla
and Matthew Ives and Scott
Landauer of Oregon City. The mini
mum requirement for receiving a
participation certificate was to ac
quire 30 points through attendance
and participation by attending
meetings held four times during the
school year.
Two members of Alpha Xi Zeta,
Stacie Harp and Hillary Wootan
have outstanding achievements.
Harp is the current chapter presi
dent and the outgoing regional
vice president. Harp received the
Personal Fellowship award for the
person with the highest number of
points. She received 207 partici
patory points. Wootan received
the Personal Hallmark award,
which is for exemplifying four pre
vious Hallmark awards during the
past year.
Two of the awards were to the
Clackamas Chapter. The chapter
earned the Participation award and
the Leadership Hallmark award.
The Participation award is for send
ing the highest number of mem
bers to the four regional meetings.
The Leadership Hallmark award is
for doubling the number of leader
ship positions within Phi Theta
Kappa. Alpha Xi Zeta was also
named as a distinguished chapter
in the Oregon region. They were
awarded with a scholarship to the
International Honors Institute at
Catholic University of America.
This will be held this May in Wash
ington, D.C., and the scholarship
has a value of $750.
one in the office. And that is just
what we want to get back right now.
We need their ideas,” said
Johnston.
“When students say they don’t
even know where the ASG office
is I feel bad and I ask, ‘why?’” she
said. “Why don’t they know? Be
cause it’s there for them.”
The convention will be a series
of forums attended by students
with discussions about the differ
ent articles of the Constitution.
Office manager Lynn Brown said
that the forums will begin in May
and will probably continue next fall.
The review committee will then
consider what the forums have pro
posed as changes to the Constitu
tion.
LeDoux said that three goals he
wants to see accomplished with the
constitutional convention are bet
ter representation of the students,
a review of the bylaws, and to make
any necessary changes. In particu
lar, he would like to see the bylaws
reflect the ASG's responsibility to
develop better communications
with students.
Gaines at Gregory
Ernest J. Gaines, one of the
most celebrated authors of lit
erature today, will read and sign
books Friday at 7:30 p.m. in the
Gregory Forum.
Gaines' most current success
is his novel A Lesson Befpre Dy
ing, which will be made into an
HBO movie. Originally, the film
was to debut in April, but the
date has been moved back to
May 22.
There is a great appreciation
for Gaines’ work by both blacks
and whites. His lectures are
popular and he is often invited
to speak and read at libraries.
Ironically, some of the librar
ies that have asked him to speak
are the same libraries that had
kicked him out during our
country’s segregation period.
Of his eight books, Catherine
Carmier, Of Love and Dust, In
My Father’s House, The Autobi
ography of Miss Jane Pittman,
A Gathering of Old Men and A
Lesson Before Dying are novels,
Bloodline is a collection of short
stories and A Long Day in No
vember is a children’s book.
Admission to the event is $10
general, $5 students and seniors.
Tickets can be purchased at the
college bookstore or at Looking
Glass Bookstore, 318 SW Taylor,
Portland. For further information,
please contact ext. 2230.
CHAR
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