The Undergraduate Assembly wrestled with whether to endorse the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act at their meeting Sunday night before finally voting to table the issue until next week.
Representatives from MEChA, Penn’s Chicano cultural group, teamed with several UA members to draft a letter to the current Pennsylvania Senators and Congressmen vocalizing the UA’s support for the DREAM Act to pass.
The resolution included both a draft of the letter and a statement urging Penn President Amy Gutmann, who has publicly endorsed the act last spring, to reach out to peer institutions to encourage further endorsement.
MEChA President and College junior Rosie Brown said “there isn’t any precedent” for other student governments making such an endorsement, but that she supports Penn being at the forefront of this movement.
She said that while Sen. Arlen Specter has voiced support for the act, “he seemed to be wobbling a bit” and that this letter would “hopefully keep him on track.”
While debating the resolution, UA Treasurer and Wharton senior Ryan Houston asked the UA body how many of the members had read the act. After seeing that only two had read it, they moved to return to the resolution next week.
Debate also centered around whether or not it would be appropriate, or part of the UA’s purpose, to take a stance on a controversial political issue where no formal data about the student body’s stance exists.
Several members pointed out that the UA has dealt with political issues in the past such as the casino almost built in Center City last year.
While Houston believed the act is “far beyond the scope of the UA,” others noted that the act affects the lives of the five known undocumented freshmen currently enrolled at Penn, according to La Casa Latina, the cultural resource center for Latino students.
Asian Pacific Student Coalition chairman and College junior Nicky Singh presented the recently collected results of a survey on undergraduate class participation.
Over 300 students responded to the survey, according to Singh.
He summarized the general trends from the data. Findings include that students at higher class levels attend fewer recitations and enjoy them less and they prefer participating in smaller, discussion-based classes.
The data also found that students at the Wharton School are less comfortable participating in class than students of other schools.
Singh and UA Academic Affairs Director and Wharton junior Faye Cheng plan to present the findings to representatives from Penn Course Review to include questions pertaining to participation in course evaluations.
The Daily Pennsylvanian is an independent, student-run newspaper. Please consider making a donation to support the coverage that shapes the University. Your generosity ensures a future of strong journalism at Penn.
DonatePlease note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.