UA absence policy sparks controversy

The Undergraduate Assembly's leadership is divided over how to deal with absentee members. While attendance at this week's Undergraduate Assembly was higher than in the past two weeks, UA leaders are still considering asking some members to resign for missing too many meetings. The first two meetings of the semester -- on January 18 and January 26 -- suffered from year-low attendance levels, with only 20 of the UA's 33 members attending each meeting. But 26 members attended the last meeting, which took place Sunday night. After low attendance figures all of last year -- the UA often had trouble even getting the 17 members necessary to call the meeting to order -- strict new bylaws were passed last April to punish frequent absentees. As a result, attendance improved significantly last semester, with no more than eight members missing any one meeting. But after 13 members missed each of the first two meetings this semester, the UA leadership began expressing its concern. According to the UA bylaws, if a member misses three meetings in a semester without first notifying the Executive Board, the body could vote for the member's resignation. So far, only two UA members -- Wharton junior Neilesh Sikder and College senior Mike Steib -- have missed all three meetings this semester. "I'm going to find a way to kick people off the UA," College junior and UA Chairperson Noah Bilenker said after the second meeting of the semester. He later described the low attendance as "kind of unnerving." Bilenker indicated that Sikder and Steib were excused from the first meeting because of travel difficulties, to the surprise of UA Secretary and College junior Olivia Troye. Members who need to miss a meeting are supposed to report to Troye. Troye herself, however, missed the first meeting of the semester. Steib, chairperson of the UA's Greek Issues Committee, explained his absences as a matter of giving priority to fraternity activities and the post-graduation job search. "It's an important time for anyone in a fraternity," the Delta Kappa Epsilon brother said. He went on to say that it's "a thick time for seniors looking for jobs" and that "I'm not going to give up a job for next year for a meeting." The members of the UA Executive Board were ambivalent about whether to take action against frequent absentees. "There is a likelihood that they could be asked to resign," said UA Vice Chairperson and College junior Samara Barend, a Daily Pennsylvanian columnist. "I would definitely push for [disciplinary action]," she said. "The whole body voted for it unanimously? that we have this attendance policy." But UA Treasurer Bill Conway was not so sure, noting that "the bylaws are a little hazy about what the exact procedure is." "To some extent you have to see if it's worth the public embarrassment? and the time it takes to do it," the College sophomore added. Bilenker blamed the low attendance at the first meeting of the semester on rush events that prevented some members of the primarily-Greek body from attending. The second meeting was plagued by confusion as to when the week's meeting would be rescheduled to in order to avoid conflict with Super Bowl XXXII. An e-mail sent on the UA listserv announced the meeting was to be held Monday at 8 p.m. -- not at the correct 10 p.m. meeting time. The error was corrected by a later message and members said it was probably not to blame for the absences. With rush over and the weekly meeting back at its normal time, 26 members attended the last UA meeting. This was the highest total of the semester, but still down from last semester, which boasted several meetings where more than 30 of the body's members showed up.