The Associated Student’s of Madison’s Coordinating Council held its last meeting of the year Wednesday in which members reflected on the previous semester and looked forward to next semester’s campaigns.
Staff Salary Increase
ASM voted on whether the internal budget should pay for two professional staff to participate in the Critical Compensation Fund.
The Critical Compensation Fund gives certain staff members on campus raises that have been employed for at least twelve months and have satisfactory job evaluations, Joanna Gurstelle, ASM Director of Staff and Programs, said. The fund also provides money to groups that are not self-funded, she said. The guidelines outline either a two percent increase of their salary, $1,000 if they are classified staff and $1,200 if they are academic staff, she said.
Gursten determined which staff members within ASM were eligible and submitted the applications, three of which were accepted. Two of them are paid through ASM’s internal budget and are set to go into effect on January 1st.
ASM approved the staff salary increase.
Grants
ASM approved a grant for $3,500 for space and equipment rental for the Wisconsin Institute of Discovery.
ASM also approved a grant for $4,000 for maintenance and stage for an event hosted by Delta Sigma Theta.
Semester Reflection and Development
While reflecting on their past semester, ASM members agreed that committees needed to improve upon hiring transitions and have more involvement from volunteers. The Legislative Committee said they needed to recruit new members and the Finance Committee said they needed more training.
The University Affairs Committee said they had good retention, collaboration and outreach. The Legislative Committee also had positive feedback on their information packets.
ASM members agreed they needed to increase outreach to other organizations, be more vocal, and improve on planning ahead for future meetings in order to stay on time. Members also agreed they needed to maintain a balance between being passive and aggressive during debates in order to have a stimulating conversation.
ASM spokesperson Grace Bolt suggested eliminating the use of laptops during the meetings to decrease distractions.
ASM members said the positives of the semester included the recruitment drive, being respectful of all cultures, having good involvement by the freshman representatives and forming friendships.
Preparation For Next Semester
ASM Chair David Gardner said the goals for next semester were focused on training new people, reaching out to shy people and identifying future leaders for next year.
Bolt said ASM would continue to work on campaigns next semester, specifically Sexual Assault Response and Prevention, Responsible Action and textbook affordability.
