Council plans '99-00 agenda

In a meeting that finished just under the allotted two-hour time period, University Council spent its first gathering of the semester yesterday mulling over its year-long agenda, considering responsibilities for each of its 12 committees and attending to normal administrative business. After opening status reports from University administrators and student leaders, Council agreed that the six issues on its agenda -- which was developed in the spring and focused primarily on safety and minority recruitment and retention -- were still as relevant this year and will still be reviewed by Council in its monthly meetings. That was the easy part. Harder, though, was coming up with additional items to include on Council's agenda, as moderator Will Harris' suggestion for more issues was greeted with a brief silence. "When you're asked a question that's that weighty, no one wants to be the person that determines the consensus. People want to ponder it thoroughly," said Undergraduate Assembly Chairperson Michael Silver, a College senior, offering an explanation for why Council members did not immediately suggest additional agenda items. United Minorities Council Chairperson Chaz Howard suggested to Council that certain issues -- minority recruitment and retention, for instance -- remain on the agenda because they have not yet been fully resolved and still warrant attention. "Oftentimes change has not happened," the College senior said. "The percentage of people of color is still the same as it has been in years." However, University President Judith Rodin pointed out later in the meeting that Penn has more minority students than it has had in the past. Howard also suggested that alcohol abuse, which has perhaps garnered more attention around campus in the past six months than any other issue, be included in the agenda. He said a means for gauging the effectiveness of the University's new alcohol policy should somehow be devised. But Provost Robert Barchi said it was too premature to begin to assess the policy's results. "I think to begin to measure it now wouldn't be of much use," Barchi said. "We only want to start measuring it once we have our benchmarks in place." Council will likely review the alcohol policy periodically throughout the year. The meeting then turned its attention to immediate responsibilities and the long-term tasks of the individual committees. The 12 groups, ranging from the Community Relations Committee to the International Programs Committee to the Personnel Benefits Committee, were each charged by Council's steering committee with two or three goals on which they should focus this year. Representatives from three committees -- the Committee on Admissions and Financial Aid, the Bookstore Committee and the Facilities Committee -- all updated Council on their progress. After the presentation, Howard urged the administration to speed up work on minority recruitment and find more ways in which the endowment for undergraduate financial aid can be increased. In addition, several UA members, including Vice Chairperson and Wharton senior Ryan Robinson and Treasurer Michael Bassik, a College junior, raised concerns over the price and accessibility of textbooks and bulkpacks. Attendance at yesterday's meeting was sparse, as approximately 30 of the 92 Council members -- students, faculty and staff whose job it is to advise the president and provost -- showed up. All 14 UA members who serve on Council were present. Silver also discussed the UA's agenda for the year. He mentioned plans for e-mail stations in the bookstore, a forthcoming landlord survey and possible outdoor basketball courts.