Southern Methodist University Student Senate minutes and records

A Guide to the Collection

Historical Note

From its first class, Southern Methodist University students have elected their peers to represent them to the faculty and administration. The Senate has operated under multiple constitutions and several names, including: Student Council, Student Caucus, Council of the Student's Association, and finally the SMU Student Senate.

The Student Council began shortly after SMU opened its doors in 1915. The first president was Umphrey Lee, who later was elected the fourth President of SMU. In the early days, students voted for the usual positions of president, secretary and representatives, but they also voted for cheerleaders (until the 1970s) and editor of the student newspaper and Rotunda (until the 1960s).

During the Depression, the Student Council twice voted to lower student activity fees and also used its voice to try to change policies to allow student dances to be held on campus. SMU held its first on-campus dance in 1940. During World War II, the Student Council raised $6,900 for War Bonds.

The most notable changes to student governance and, in fact, all campus governance took place in 1970 with the creation of the University Assembly with faculty, student and administrative representatives. The University Assembly recommended student activity fees, planned university convocations, and established safety and security rules. During the 1970s, the Student Senate fought for continued "shared governance" through various petitions to the University President and Board of Trustees—especially concerning the forced resignation of University President Hardin in 1974.

From the 1980s until 2007, the Student Senate has

• Created a standing committee for Faculty evaluations

• Established the student Senate Scholarship Endowment Fund

• Voted to fund campus-wide call boxes and established a fund for taxi service

• Established a formal liaison between the Student Senate and the board of Governors

• Debated fervently over the recognition of GLSSO (Gay/Lesbian Student Support Organization) and after several years voted to give recognition to this group

• Established recycling programs

• Proposed and funded "Three Weeks for Relief" campaign assisting students displaced by Hurricane Katrina.

According to its website in 2007, the SMU Student Senate initiates action on student concerns, adopts the Student Code of Conduct, provides student scholarships, and is responsible for the appropriation of funds to student organizations.

Scope and Contents of the Collection

This collection includes a fairly comprehensive run of Student Senate meeting minutes from 1938-1983, with sporadic records from 1922-1938. The collection also contains minutes and documents from the 2000-2001 school year. Minutes for Student Senate meetings are included for most years, but not all. Minutes are generally taken by the Student Body Secretary, who is elected each spring for the following school year.

Other series in this collection include some, but not all, constitutions.

Restrictions

Access to Collection:

Collection is open for research use.

Publication Rights:

Permission to publish materials must be obtained from the Director of the DeGolyer Library.

Copyright Statement:

It is the responsibility of the user to obtain copyright authorization.

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Southern Methodist University Student Senate minutes and records, Southern Methodist University Archives, DeGolyer Library, Southern Methodist University.

Acquisition Information

Deposit.

Processing Information

Materials were found in several boxes in rough order. Most were labeled. Records were sorted, re-foldered and paper clips were removed.

Processed by

Todd Baty, 2005-2007.

Encoded by

Lara Corazalla, 2007.

Detailed Description of the Collection