SGB spars over newsletters, yellow bracelets and meeting rules

Although Student Government Board member Todd Brandon Morris announced last week that he will… Although Student Government Board member Todd Brandon Morris announced last week that he will not run again for board or board president, he has not allowed his lame-duck status to quiet him down.

In the last two Thursday-evening SGB meetings, Morris has voiced his displeasure with decisions made by some of his fellow board members, as well as SGB President Brian Kelly.

Last meeting, Morris’ discontentment with such decisions arose during a discussion regarding whether SGB should help fund a newsletter being created by the Interfraternity Council.

The Greek community requested money to print 2,000 copies of a professionally printed newsletter that would include articles written by Pitt Greeks and discussing different projects that the various organizations in IFC have worked on. IFC would then distribute the letter to Greeks, alumni and non-Greek students, or “independents.”

According to Mike Kelly, who spoke on IFC’s behalf, half the letters would be distributed within the Greek community and the rest would be available for outsiders, as a potential recruitment tool and a way to spread news of the good the Greeks do on campus.

When Morris asked to whom exactly IFC would give the 1,000 extra copies, Mike Kelly told him IFC would have it available at various events, like Meet the Greeks. But Morris did not seem satisfied with that answer, adding that people attending such events would have already shown interest in becoming Greek and, therefore, would not need a letter to persuade them.

Brian Kelly quickly added, though, that IFC could also attempt to distribute the newsletters on the street to random students.

According to board member and Black Action Society President Lauren Evette Williams, that is one of the major ways BAS distributes its newsletter BlackLine — in addition to distributing it at their various events.

At first, board member and fellow BAS leader Charis Jones hesitated to put forth her seal of approval, because, she said, distributing 1,000 copies of a newsletter can be difficult. But after learning that the newsletter would only come out once a semester, she said she approved of the letter.

“I’m inclined to be for this because I like the idea of the Greek community reaching out,” she said.

But Morris did not echo this notion, calling the newsletter a “waste” and ending up as the only board member to vote against allocating IFC $2,446.99 to print the letter.

After the board approved the funding, Morris was visibly upset and began mumbling about the board’s decision.

In his closing comments, Morris continued to speak out against the suggested benefits of the newsletter, and also spoke out against a proposed idea from an SGB committee chair to sell the yellow, Lance Armstrong bracelets that have become a popular product for raising money to benefit cancer research. The proposal would allow the committee to make a profit that would go toward SGB.

After saying he thought the idea was “morally wrong,” Morris added, “but what I say doesn’t go very far these days.”

Soon after, board member Matt Hutchinson offered his approval for the newsletter, saying it has to start somewhere.

“Whatever you say, Hutch,” Morris responded.

“Your stock keeps going up,” Hutchinson quipped, referring to his ranking of his fellow board members for a “Board Member of the Year” award.

A week earlier, Morris and Brian Kelly sparred when Morris attempted to open discussion regarding new rules and changes proposed for the SGB election bylaws.

Board members had received packets regarding the potential changes, and Morris wanted to discuss them at the open meeting before the board members had sat down privately to go over them together. According to Morris, the board had put aside time that week to discuss only the Student Activities Fee reform, and he would not have the chance to meet another time.

As a result, he asked to lift the Robert’s Rules of Order, which dictate certain protocols regarding who can speak and when. The board voted in favor of this.

But in the midst of Morris’ questions to Elections Chair Andrew Powers, board member Joe Pasqualichio requested that the rules be reinstated. Soon, three of his fellow board members voted to reinstate the rules, with Brian Kelly breaking the tie.

Morris appeared frustrated with the situation, explaining that he asked to suspend the rules so that some issues could be clarified, but that no issues had been clarified at that point. After Brian Kelly announced that the rules were back in place, Morris said he was not finished speaking.

“You were, as far as I’m concerned,” Brian Kelly told Morris.

Pasqualichio and fellow board member Amit Kotz said they did not have the packets with them and were not prepared for the conversation at hand. Brian Kelly later said that he did not want to avoid the issue, but not everyone was prepared for it. He added that board members could also use the office hours they must hold to resolve various issues with the new election’s code if they could not meet outside the public meeting.

When another spat arose later in the meeting as the Board discussed funding for the SGB co-sponsored bonfire that was to take place just minutes later, Brian Kelly silenced Morris with a majority vote from the board. Morris then challenged Brian Kelly, saying that, according to Robert’s Rules, Brian Kelly needed at least five people to vote to silence him. Brian Kelly maintained that he only needed a majority, and that with only seven of the eight board members in attendance, he needed four.

But Morris continued, insisting Brian Kelly needed five. “In fact, I’d put money on it,” he said.

Brian Kelly ignored Morris and continued with the meeting.

“Congratulations, SGB,” Brian Kelly said as the board approved its own funding.