Agenda 2.24.16; Minutes 2.10.16

Post date: Feb 24, 2016 10:36:42 PM

Agenda 2.24.16

• 1. Approval of Minutes

  2. Reports

  3. Executive Session

  4. Gender Motion

  5. Notes & New Business

Council Minutes 2.10.16

"Don’t look back. You’re not going that way.” ~Anon. (Also, you might trip…☺)

• 1. Approval of Minutes

  2. Reports

     • Mod: Council period starts @ 10:15. Please be here on time. Hearing from Mr. Campbell about Athletics over Break Motion next week.

     • Treasurer: Council Funds: $5,131.66; Co-Curricular Funds: $3,604.00

     • Secretary: Let Lilly know if you are late because Lilly doesn’t notice if you come in late always because Lilly isn’t a perfect human being. Just like the rest of us.

     • PR: Madame Doyle posted a great article about gender in the Council Schoology group.

     • Admin: Discussed X-Periods.

     • OEC: Compiled a list of possible Bylaw Revisions.

     • SL: Continued discussion on Breathalyzer, will be doing Student Life survey soon. Email Daniel or Cece if you want anything added to the Student Life survey.

     • SA: Winter Carnival is this Friday from 10-12. Seniors are in the lead.

     • Curric: Final discussion on the Homework Survey. Will be sent out tomorrow after Common Ground.  

     • COI: Talked about Course Evaluations.

  3. Underclassmen Awards Motion

• • a. Names should be called before the award criteria

    • Point A Passes

  • b. Personal comments should be written congratulating other top students in report cards

    • Point B Passes

  • c. The awards list should be shared between departments as early as possible to help decrease repeat winners

    • Point C Fails

  • d. Presentations should be kept as short as possible

    • Point D Passes

  • e. We should strive to create student awards that honor a more diverse set of the high school population (Student Life will discuss this further)

    • Point E Passes

    • f. Have all the decisions reviewed by coordinator’s committee a month before the awards ceremony.

      • “I move to amend the point to read ‘Have all the decisions reviewed by coordinator’s committee a month before the awards ceremony to help decrease repeat winners. This is not intended to deter departments from selecting the same decisive recipient, but to help minimize repeat winners in close calls.’”

        • Amendment Passes

  • f. Have all the decisions reviewed by coordinator’s committee a month before the awards ceremony to help decrease repeat winners. This is not intended to deter departments from selecting the same decisive recipient, but to help minimize repeat winners in close calls.

    • Oftentimes you have multiple students who meet all of the criteria. You would like to award all of them but you can’t. This would not prevent a clear winner from getting the award.

    • If an pseudo-arbitrary decision was made, we would see a lot less of the same students winning all the awards.

    • One of the factors is the probability that they would get recognized in a different place.

    • Point F Passes

  • Additional Point G: It is recommended that the underclassmen awards ceremony be designated as an optional activity for students, whether it is held as a daytime or evening program.

    • Many students find the ceremony damaging. The ceremony is an institution that does not serve the student body, but a subset of individual students. Ceremonies that aren’t required are often well-attended.

    • “I move to table Point G to after Student Life has had time to discuss it.”

      • We should do this now.

      • Motion Fails

    • The Underclassmen Awards Ceremony is not only an academic ceremony. Many groups perform and it is one of the few school assemblies that we have.

    • Point G Fails

  • Final Recommendation:

    • a. Names should be called before the award criteria.

    • b. Personal comments should be written congratulating other top students in report cards.

    • c. Presentations should be kept as short as possible.

    • d. We should strive to create student awards that honor a more diverse set of the high school population (student life will discuss this further).

    • e. Have all the decisions reviewed by coordinator’s committee a month before the awards ceremony to help decrease repeat winners. This is not intended to deter departments from selecting the same decisive recipient, but to help minimize repeat winners in close calls.

  • N.B. Because the original Point C failed, the final Points C, D, and E were originally Points D, E, and F

• 1. Breathalyzer Discussion

     • Exploratory Discussion about having breathalyzers at dances and to use them as a screening to get into dances

     • Question of trusting the students, which is an important value at HHS

     • Intimidating to Freshmen and Underclassmen; sends message to them that everybody is drunk at dances

     • Council isn’t a good representation of Student Body in this area

     • Might create more problems than it solves

     • This may not be the route to go for creating a drug and alcohol-free environment at dances

     • Freshmen and others are uncomfortable at dances now with intoxicated students

     • Students might be offended if they are accused of being drunk, esp. if they are not

1. Meeting Adjourns